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The Contrast

By: lenarosic



People believe that danger comes with the night. The darker the night the greater the risk. Especially since, during the nighttime, the dark creatures come to watch the humans. It was late autumn and a rainy night. The town was covered in shadow. The shadow...the eternal ally of the dark elves, or drows, as they call themselves. 

Only a few humans knew about them, but what they knew was that drows were merciless killers and great warriors. Drows were elves with black skin and white hair. Just as their cousins the light elves, drows had pointed ears and a long life span. In contrast to the light elves, they did practice more black magic than white magic.

A lonely figure covered with a long cloak was walking toward the town's gates. One of the guards woke up and saw him approaching.

"Hold right there! What business do you have, stranger? "He was ready to attack the stranger with his weapon if need be. The figure smirked.

"I am just looking for shelter. Will you let me in? " 

"Why should I?" The guard was still suspicious. Who would look for shelter at this time of night?

"I can pay you. I only want a place to stay and something to eat". He was waiting patiently for the guard to decide. He did not have to wait too long.

The doors opened with a long creaking noise, letting him enter. He tossed a small bag to the guard.

"There is no shelter at this time of the night, but maybe you can find something in the local brothel. I have heard that they recently got some new girls, all beautiful. You can check it yourself if you want." The guard said in a now more friendly tone. The figure only nodded. 

'Hm... the brothel. That sounded interesting.' he thought. After all, he was sick of the cruelty of the women he knew. All of them were the same and their main pleasure was torturing males and sometimes even females. Besides there was the fact that it was far too long since he felt a woman's touch on his body. 'Why not...' He surely had enough money to pay for a female, so he decided that he would let himself relax and enjoy.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Madame Ruby, a woman in her late forties but still in very god shape, was smoking a pipe. She would do that every time she was not pleased with something. Today the reason for her bad mood was the rain. The damned rain was falling almost continuously for a week now and that was bad for her business. Because of the weather almost nobody visited the brothel. Maybe it was a bad idea to buy new girls after all. 

Slaves were always expensive, especially young and beautiful girls. Because of the money she had spent on the girls, the whole brothel was almost out of the money. There were men who would come for pleasure and pay her, but itt was not enough to supply everybody in the brothel with food and other things.

There was a knock on the door. 'Oh, a customer! How wonderful!' she thought and hurried to the door to open it. There stood a tall figure covered with a cloak. She could not see his face, but judging by his body, it was a strong young man. For a second Madame Ruby wished that she could please this man herself.

"Good evening sir." She cheerfully addressed him.

"Good evening ma'am. I am looking for shelter and some food." His voice was deep and attractive.

"You chose a good place. Is there anything else that I can offer you?" she asked as he entered the brothel. 

"For now food and a room to stay will be enough. Thank you."

"If you wish anything...anything else I will gladly make your wish come true." She let him in, never taking her eyes off this dark stranger. Although he entered, he did not remove the hood of his cloak from his head. However, she could clearly see the rest of his body. He wore heavy boots, brown pants, and a long blue tunic. He wore brown gloves, which also he did not remove. He sat down at the table near the window and ordered food. 

Madame Ruby called her girls and they brought him the food and good alcoholic drink. Some of them were observing his body like Madame Ruby, some were wondering if he could pay them for the food and the drink, but most of them were slightly scared because of his covered face.

"Is he some kind of assassin?" one girl asked, watching him eat peacefully.

"He does not seem to be one", said another. "He is too calm to be an assassin."

"Are you sure? You never know and why is he hiding his face?"

"Girls, instead of talking, you could ask him if he wants some company." Madame Ruby was saying impatiently.

She needed money and was more than ready to do anything for him. The two prostitutes approached the stranger. He talked little, but was polite to them. They were lovable to him and after he finished his meal, the stranger asked for a girl.

"There are girls to suit all tastes... young, old, skillful, patient, impassioned..." Madame Ruby was enumerating the girls who were working in the brothel. The stranger was listening to her patiently.

"I want a girl who can massage and whose heart is pure, "he said. 

"I just know THE girl for you sir." Madame Ruby said. She turned to other girls.

"Do you plan to send HER? ", one asked. Madame Ruby stared at her.

"Yes, and you know that she cannot stay untouched forever. Now show him the room and send her to him. "Madame Ruby connected her palms. " The little dove will have work tonight."

+++++++++++++++++++

Balok was lying on the bed. The room was crimson red and there were many candles. He liked it. The bed was very comfortable and soft, the kind of bed you could easily fall asleep...after a pleasurable meeting. And she had yet to come. Balok prepared himself by taking his clothes off, leaving only his pants on.

He still worried about how she would react when she would finally see him. He was sure that she would be scared of him. But he promised to himself that he would assure her that he would not hurt or kill her. His sensitive ears detected a soft knock on the door.

"Come in.", he said. He watched as the door opened, revealing the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She had long black hair, her skin was white as snow, and her eyes were green as grass. Her body was attractive and curvy. The girl was dressed in a long pink gown that showed the shape of her body.

"You asked for me sir..." Her voice was trembling... from fear? "I came here to..." she was cut off by his appearance. In front of her was lying the most fearsome creature, a drow. For a moment she wanted to run, but decided not to. Her mistress would torture her because of that.

"Do no be afraid. Come." his voice was gentle and calm. She made a step toward him. He sat up and extended a hand and she backed away out of fear. Balok did not move and waited for her to calm down. "Come." he said again.

The girl reluctantly took his black hand in hers. Although afraid, she was stunned by their skin contrast. She could feel the warmth of his hand and looked into his eyes. They were violet, deep violet like amethyst.

"What's your name?" he asked her, leading her to the bed.

"Rose, sir." Her heart was beating so fast it felt as if it would burst at any moment. Rose sat down on the bed. Balok watched her. He could have easily jumped on her to pin her to the bed, but he did not want to scare her further.

By law, he could do almost everything to her, as long he does not kill her. Every male, despite his race (elf, human, drow...) could do to a prostitute as he pleases, but it was strictly forbidden to kill a prostitute. A prostitute was neither private property nor a slave. A prostitute was the property of the brothel and only Madam Ruby had a right to decide her fate, not a customer.

"Rose... it's a beautiful human name." Balok smiled. Rose relaxed a little. Yes, he was a dark elf, but his gesture, his voice, and mostly his appearance attracted her to him. 'By God, he was handsome. Dark and handsome, like a sin.' "There is nothing to fear. I just want pleasure, and pleasure I will return."

"It's my duty to satisfy you sir." she whispered.

"You are still afraid. Why?" he thought that he had to do more to convince her that he meant no harm. However, he was not prepared for the words that came from her lips.

"I...You are my first customer." He stared at her. 'How could it be that he was her first customer?' Rose was a very beautiful girl. 'It seemed to be impossible that she did not have somebody before him.' "I was never taken before. You would be my first." her voice trembled.

"Virgin?! You are a virgin? ", he was more than surprised. Rose only nodded. Now he was going to laugh, she though. However, Rose did not expect him to smile. "Well, let's make your first time memorable." He gently drew her into his embrace and kissed her.

The kiss was gentle at first, then more deep and passionate. His lips, unlike his strong arms, were soft and not forceful. She tried to return the kiss in the same way, but, being never kissed before Rose failed. Her attempts of kissing did not match his skillful lips. Slowly he started to travel down her neck with his kisses.

Rose held her breath, as Balok found a sensitive spot on her neck and began to suck and nibble. Her hands went through his snow white hair. Balok smiled. That was a good sign...Rose was enjoying his kisses. His right hand traveled to the clasps on the back of her gown. Rose was wearing a gown with corset, so it took him a little longer to unbind the corset with one hand. Rose broke from the blissful trance in which she had fallen and helped him.

Like petals, the upper part of her gown fell down, revealing two soft hillocks crowned by pink rings.

He stopped kissing her to observe her body. Rose was confused. 'Why did he stop? Was she ugly to him? 'She tried to cover herself.

"No, stop. You are gorgeous." There was no command in his voice, only begging. His eyes were dark from desire and full of promises. He started again kissing her, while his hands began to explore her breasts. It did not take too long to drive her crazy and for her nipples to stiffen. Rose enjoyed his touch. She got an idea and took his tunic off. His chest was muscular and well defined. He had a large tattoo on his left arm in the shape of fire. Her hand traveled over his body and he moaned in delight.

"Please, let me see you." She managed to say.

Balok obeyed and sat up. He quickly took off his pants and showed her his male glory. She gasped. His body was magnificent, asking for kisses and touches. His manhood stood proud. He was big, but no monster. Rose did blush a little. Seeing her reaction, the dark elf smiled.

"Do not worry, I will be gentle. I promise."

He undressed her completely and now they both were as naked as on the day when they came into the world. He started to kiss and lick her breasts, earning cries of pleasure from her. His hand traveled to her hips and started to rub her womanhood. Rose could hardly bear this. The dark elf was good, very good at pleasuring a woman.

She did not expect him to be so patient, gentle, and passionate with her. She liked it. It seemed almost like he fell in love with her. She came quickly on his fingers. Balok brought the hand to his mouth and tasted her pleasure liquid.

"Mm. Rose, you taste good."

"Please sir. I want to taste you too."

"Not now, beauty. Right now I need you. I can not wait any longer." He slowly entered her, watching her face. At first her expression of surprise, then one of pain (he knew it hurt) and finally, an expression of pleasure. He waited for her to get adjusted to him. Rose indicated to him and Balok started to move back and forth.

Wave after wave of pleasure was going through her body. She never felt like this before. Rose certainly knew about sexual contact between man and woman, but seen from the perspective of a prostitute, she was frightened at the thought of this contact. She thought that she would never enjoy copulation, but only do her job. How wrong she was. Balok was a great lover and made her wanting him even more. Progressively he was speeding up his movements. They both were breathing hard. Her legs hugged him around his waist.

"I can not stand it anymore. I am so...close." She moaned.

"So am I."

Rose came shortly after the words left his mouth. Her body squeezed him and then she relaxed. Balok pulled out of her and came on her lower stomach. He could not make a mistake. Dark elves are very fertile and he did not want to cause her problems by impregnating her. Exhausted, he dropped beside her on the bed and they fell asleep.

The Contrast Ch. 02



The day dawned with thick snow and the whole town was covered with a thick layer of white dust. The air was clear and fresh. As for the sun, it was too weak to make sleepy people get out of their beds. It was the same for Balok. He liked the snow and winter. The first day of winter came with a lot of snow. It always had a calming effect on him. Snow would make him think that not everything was black and dark. Like every other dark elf, Balok liked the winter because the sun was weak and he could get out. Dark elves, contrary of human thinking could get out of their under dark realm, and their eyes would not suffer a lot, if they used special magic spells or drink potions or, simply step by step get used to the sunlight. 

However none of that was necessary for the drow right now, because his eyes were set on the sleeping form beside him. Rose, beautiful Rose was sleeping peacefully. Her chest was rising and falling in a gentle rhythm. He smiled and smoothed her long dark hair. Last night was amazing. Of course she was afraid of him, I mean who would not?! But he convinced her that he meant no harm. Ah, Rose. 'How did she end up here in the brothel? Did her family abandon her? What happened to her to end here? Was she without money?'

Balok felt Rose move. Up until now she had her back turned to him. She turned toward him and moaned. She opened her beautiful green eyes and looked at him. 

"Good morning sir. Did you sleep well? " she asked still sleepy. "Well, yes I did. What about you Rose? " 

"Fine." She answered shortly. "Is this everything you desired? May I leave?" she asked, waiting for his response. 

"Yes, Rose it is what I wanted. Did you enjoy it? " he brushed his hand over her cheek. 

"Yes, sir."She got up and started to dress. Balok watch her a few moments, especially her curves. He wished he could take her again, but knew that he had business to do in the city. Plus he knew she was still tired. He would let her rest. He quickly got up and dressed himself. Before she could say anything he left the room. 

Madame Ruby was having breakfast when she heard the stranger walking down the stairs to the room they used as a kitchen. She greeted him. 

"Are you pleased sir?"

"Yes, very pleased. But I must ask one more favor from you. I want you to let Rose take a day off. She is still exhausted and I want her to rest well." 

"Such strange request from you stranger, but I could let her rest. So, where is the payment?" she was slightly taken back when she heard him say the request. 'Why would a customer want for some brothel girl to take a day off?', but she would not question anything as long a man has enough money to pay. 

"Take this." He tossed a heavy bag on the table. She took it and swung it. It was indubitably full with gold coins. "Here you have one hundred maldas (elven gold coins). I am sure that will be enough for dinner, bed and the girl." He said. 

"Oh my God. Yes sir! By all means yes! This will be more than enough. The girl is free the whole day to do as she pleases. You have my word." As she said it, they heard the movement and turned to see Rose standing a few feet away from them, watching. Madame Ruby observed the girl. She did look exhausted, but fine and not at all abused or beaten. 

"Madame, he..." Rose started to say, but the mistress silenced her. 

"It's alright Rose. He paid for everything. Do not worry!" she said. "Also you will have the whole day off to do whatever you want. Use it."

'A whole day off? But how? Why?' Rose looked at Balok. Although she could not see his face under the hood of his cloak, she was sure that he was smiling. 'Why would he do that?' He did not even know her, less love her. So why would he do something like this? But then again she was grateful to him. While watching her, the drow understood what she thought, understood her questions. She experienced a lot of things last night. Her fear because of her first customer, then her fear when she found out that he was a drow, then fear of the possible pain(he hoped that she felt only a little pain at the beginning) and finally the pleasure of two bodies connected together. That was the reason he decided to let her rest and collect herself. 

"Then I will be going. Maybe I will return some day." Balok said and exited the brothel. 

"And good luck with your traveling sir." Madame Ruby said and closed the door. She tossed the bag in her hands. "Indeed with your traveling."

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Rose was lying on the bed in her room, the same room where she lost her innocence to the drow. She was thinking about him, his actions, behavior...everything. 'Why would he spend such an amount of money on her?' She did not even know how to please him, but obviously he enjoyed last night. But then again, 'Why was she so special to make him do such a thing?' 

For the first time in her life Rose felt cherished and protected. Yes, she was afraid of him, but that passed when he took her. As far as she could remember, the drow was the first person who acted nice towards her. Everybody she knew would beat, insult, and hurt her. That was the reason she was scared when someone would approach her. Her entire childhood passed in fear in the brothel. Years full of tears, fear and hard working. She did not know much about her origin. All she knew was that she grew up in the brothel. One of the prostitutes took care of her and raised her. 

'I wonder if death is a better solution for my life.' She thought. Some people can not change their life no matter how hard they try. The same thing applied to her. Pain, humiliation, and fear... that was the life of a prostitute and Rose did not want to live that way. Although the drow took her virginity and gave her pleasure, she doubted she could handle to let another man touch her. Suddenly she heard Madame Ruby and some male voice arguing. 

"I told you sir, she has a day off. The customer paid for her." Madame Ruby was trying to explain the situation.

"I do not care. You promised me that girl when I visited you last time. I want her, now!"

Their voices were so loud that Rose could hear them even through the thick wooden door. 'Were they talking about her?' she hoped that they did not. But her hopes were not answered when she heard a noise on the other side of her door. "Whore, open the door." She heard him but did not open. 

"Sir, she will not serve you today. I promised that she would rest today." Madame Ruby was losing her patience. She tried to push the man away from the door but failed. 

"Get your hands off me you witch! And you little slut, you better open the fucking door, fi you want to live."

Rose was frightened to death. She did not want to open the door. She remembered now. Last year Madame Ruby promised her to some nobleman back then, but the same year she could not keep the promise and pledged the nobleman that this year he would have her. No! Rose would not open the door. She would rather die. 'What could she do now? 'The door cracked and she backed off. The door finally opened and a tall man with gray hair, silver eyes and an evil smile entered the room. His appearance indicated a person who knew all about torture and sadism. Startled, Rose screamed before Madame Ruby could do anything.

+++++++++++++++++++ 

The fire was burning slowly. Balok was sitting near the fire, watching as the firewood went up in flames. He was tired after a long walk in the woods. He was sure he could reach his destination before dark, but like every dark elf, he was very sensitive to the sunlight.

It took a lot of energy and a great effort for the dark elves to stay in the blazing sun. And he was no exception. He would need a bigger amount of food - especially meat - to have enough energy to keep on going.

Suddenly his pointed ears picked up a faint sound. Something or someone was approaching him. Maybe an enemy? Was someone following him the whole time? He turned and saw a person, but could not see clearly who it was. He slowly stood up and took the knife from his belt. He did not plan to hurt the stranger, but had to be careful. Mostly the other races did not want to have anything to do with drows and there were even drow hunters who would hunt and kill the drows they were able to catch. 

The stranger was walking like he or she was in big hurry, or like running away from something or someone. Balok tensed, waiting with the knife ready to attack if needed. The person stopped for a moment and Balok knew that he was spotted. He tightened his grip on the knife, waiting for the stranger to move. And immediately the stranger ran in his direction. Then, all happened within a second. He grabbed the stranger and plunged him (or her) on the cold ground, holding the person down with one hand and putting the knife at its neck with the other hand. 

The stranger let out a painful moan. Balok froze. A woman? What would a woman be doing out in the woods in this weather? She did not move whatsoever. He relaxed his grip on her body, but he was still suspicious about her. His violet eyes were scanning her. 

"Kill me." She said. "You gave me pleasure, now give me freedom." 

The drow was confused. Pleasure? What kind of pleasure? When? Did he know her? He could not answer the questions he had. And yet he sensed that he somehow knew her. He lifted himself off her. "Show me your face!" he commanded. 

She did not hesitate. With her little hands she lifted the hood and the next second the drow dropped his knife on the ground. "Rose" he whispered. She was watching him still lying on the ground. Rose did not move, she only watched him. Balok was stunned from surprise. "What are you doing here Rose?"

"Lying" she simply said. He almost chuckled about her remark. 

"I mean what are you doing here in the woods. Its' really cold you know." And indeed it was cold. The drow noticed that her body was trembling. Maybe she had been trembling out of fear when he had attacked her, but now she surely was trembling from the cold. 

"Seeking freedom..." she whispered. Balok was still confused. "Kill me! Kill me and give me freedom". 

"Why do you want me to kill you, Rose?" 

She did not have time to answer him for she lost consciousness. The drow quickly lifted her from the ground. She was as light as a feather in his arms. He could see that she was wearing only a simple dress beneath her cloak. Surely she would not survive in the woods, wearing such clothes in wintertime. She would freeze to death in this weather. Suddenly he remembered. There was a place in the woods where he could take her, but he needed to hurry up.

+++++++++++++++++++ 

Rose slowly opened her eyes. The last thing she remembered was lying in the snow while the drow was standing over her with a knife in his hand and a surprised look on his dark handsome face. Where was she? Had he brought her to another place? Rose felt that her body was warm, a lot warmer than it was when she was out in the snow. She also felt a liquid thing was covering her, except her head. When she looked around carefully she found out that she was in some kind of pool 

"Thank Eilistraee that you're finally woken up! ". There was a deep and pleasant male voice. She looked up to see who it was, worrying who was near her, and her gaze met with a pair of violet eyes. It was the dark elf, the same one who took her virginity and attacked her in the woods. He was sitting by the pool and his legs were bare and were up to his knees in the water while his torso was used as a pillow for her head. 

"Where I am? How did I get here?" Rose felt she should be frightened or try to get away from him, but she was more relaxed than ever before in her whole life. 

"You were trembling from the cold and fainted. I brought you here to keep you warm. We are in a cave and this is a hot spring." 

"You... you have brought me here?? Thank you." 

"Why were you in the woods? You are not dressed properly." 

"I ran away. There was a big fire in the brothel. Everything was burning. Madame Ruby and the girls ran out of the building, so did I. They were screaming and calling for help. I did not wait and ran away. I know that they must have found out by now that I escaped and they will be looking for me. 

"Ran away? Why?"

"I...I wanted to be free. I only had this chance..." her voice broke and tears appeared in her eyes. Balok did not know what to do, but he knew that he did not want to see Rose crying. He bowed and wrapped his hands around her waist and held her. "I wanted to be free... free" she sobbed. 

"Calm down Rose, calm down. It´s alright. You are free." He tried to calm her. 

"No. They will look for me and find me. Kill me. Please just kill me, sir." 

"No!" he made her look him in the eyes. "I only kill my enemy and you are not my enemy. You did not harm or insult me. I won´t kill you. 

"You do not understand, sir. I am the property of madame Ruby and I ran away. I am not free. The only way to be free is that madame Ruby sets me free or to get killed." 

Balok decided it was enough and kissed her passionately. At first Rose was startled but then she kissed him back. Their tongues were having a battle for domination while their arms were wrapped around their bodies. Rose slowly separated herself from him only to take his pants off, while he took his tunic off. His black member was erected and warm to the touch. He gasped as she wrapped her hand around him and started to massage him. Watching his face which was reflecting pure pleasure gave her courage to continue with her plan. She brought her mouth closer to him and took the tip in. 

She felt his hand in her hair, but other than that he did nothing. He simply let her do as she wanted. Feeling him pulse in both her hand and her mouth, Rose took more of him in the mouth. His moans were guiding her. Licking, biting and kissing, she brought him to the edge. As her tongue touched the tip, she felt him explode and tried to swallow everything, but coughed. She lifted her head to look at him.

He looked a bit tired, but satisfied. Using the hand which was already in her hair, the drow brought her close to him and kissed her.

"Thank you Rose."

"You are welcome sir." 

"Balok" he corrected her. "My name is Balok Philion."



The Contrast Ch. 03



"Balok..." Rose whispered his name, a bit scared that she would pronounce it wrongly.

He rewarded her with small, but warm smile. The same smile, that told her that she was safe with him, when she lost her virginity. Strangely as it was, this dark elf was good natured. All she ever heard about dark elves was that they were merciless killers who would kill anyone they meet. She did not know if it was true, but did not want to check. She enjoyed his company and his body.

"What are you thinking?" the dark elf asked her and Rose noticed that she got lost in her thoughts. She brushed her delicate hand against his cheek. As a result Balok nuzzled his face against her hand. That simple and yet meaningful gesture told him everything. She trusted him.

"I am thinking about what I should do with my life. I do not want to go back to the brothel. Where could I go?" she was worried and Balok knew he did not have any wise answer to give her. Noting that he was silent, Rose lifted her naked body from the pool. Their eyes met. "Take me with you."

"What...?" he did not have time to finish the sentence, as she wrapped herself around his body, squeezing him. "Take me with you, please. I will cook and clean up for you. I even know to sing and dance. I would be your companion, servant, slave, mistress,...anything you want. Just please, take me with you."

"I am on a mission, Rose, and it´s very risky. You may get hurt and I do not want that." As much he wanted to take her with him, Balok knew that it would be his fault if something happened to her. Why would she want to come with him?

"At least I could experience the life out of the brothel." He knew that she was serious in her determination. The glow in her eyes was so bright and strong. He needed to think, to really think the whole situation through. Sure, Balok did not mind her presence, and surely, he would love to spend as much time with her as he could. He would have to be really careful, if he decided to travel together with her. 

"Fine" he said, after a long silence. Rose jumped for joy and kissed him. "But, you will need to listen to me, and accept my decisions. Understood?" he asked as their mouths separated. Rose smiled and nodded. The drow was stunned, her smile the most beautiful thing he had ever seen apart from her expression of pleasure and passion when they made love.

"I won´t be a burden to you, I promise." Oh Eilistraee, he hoped that he did not make a mistake. He indeed was an excellent warrior, but was not used to take care of others beside himself. But he promised himself that he would do his best to protect her. He stood up and took his boots. 

"Where are you going? I thought that you take me with you."

"I do, but first I will go back to the city and buy you some winter clothes. As much as I would like to see your beautiful body without a piece of clothing, you will need warm clothes that will protect you from the cold. Enjoy yourself and you may use my blanket to cover yourself when you get out of the pool." 

Rose blushed a little. Because of all the kissing with Balok and the warmth she felt, she had forgotten that she escaped in nothing but a thin dress, some old shoes and a cloak. Yes, it was a miracle that they met. She would not have survived in the cold if Balok had not taken her to this pool. He could have let her die in the snow but he did not. That drow did have a heart. And she did not regret her decision.

++++++++++++++++++++++

On this day the marketplace was crowded, a fact which Balok did not like. You could easily get lost, kidnapped or someone could rob you. Anyway, he had a reason to be here... to get enough supplies. He alone had enough food, but since he agreed to take Rose with him, he needed more food, drink, and more important -- to get her proper clothes.

The drow really had no idea what to buy for her, but he knew that the clothes had to be warm and suitable for traveling.

He would turn around from time to time to take a look if someone was following him. He did not see anybody, but there was the feeling of being watched. He had to be careful. Once he got enough food and drink, he walked towards the tailor's shop for the clothes. The tailor was startled when he saw Balok.

"How can I help you, sir?" the old and fragile man trembled with fear, not a big surprise. Balok knew well enough that humans were afraid of drows.

"I need warm clothes for a human female suitable for traveling in the cold."

"Where is she?" the old tailor managed to ask. Although it would be much easer to do this if Rose would have come with him, the drow knew that it would have been risky. As he entered the city he heard that the girl escaped from the brothel as the fire started. The strange thing was that they did not know how or what caused the fire. Luckily he had given them enough money to repair the building and there would still be money to survive the winter. 

"She is sick so she was not able to come here, but I can give you her size and hight." Balok almost smiled as he said it. The tailor hurried and brought him different materials in various colors. There was dark silver, deep blue, wood brown and forest green. He considered carefully the selection of fabrics. Once he had decided which he would take, he gave the tailor Rose's body measurements and left. He really did not have anything special to do, so he went to the next inn. 

"It´s such a shame, that the brothel almost burned down to the ground!" a man said to his companion. 

"Yea, I heard that the son of the mayor was killed in the fire." 

"Really?" the man showed obvious disbelieve in his voice.

"Yea, I do not know the details, but I heard that he went to the brothel because the old hag, Madame Ruby, had promised him a new girl. He was angry because some stranger got her first before him." 

Balok was listened to the conversation. Not that he did not want to ask Rose about what had happened, but she was so tired and on the edge of death when they met, that he quickly took her to the cave to warm her. He had planned to ask her, but well...was distracted in a very pleasant way. For now he would listen to them and then he would ask her to tell him what she knew and remembered.

"No shit man?! Then it was him who set up the fire." 

"No. It was somebody else, somebody who was helping the girl. You know, I gave shelter to one of the girls when they ran away from the brothel. And she told me the last thing she saw, was the mayor´s son breaking into the room of the girl he wanted to fuck and her screaming of horror as he caught her by her hands. She swears that it was then the fire appeared, just like that."

"Don't speak any further. You bring bad luck to us or to this place and I appreciate both my life and this inn." 

This was serious, Balok thought. It was no doubt a magic act, but who did that? Was anyone chasing him and had attacked too late or was the attack directed against Madame Ruby or one of the girls? Or, he felt like something was clenching his heart, was someone after Rose? He did not know and had no proof, but sent a prayer to Eilistraee, his goddess, that Rose was safe until his return. He listened a little longer to the conversation and left the inn when they dropped the subject and began to speak about other not so important stuff.

+++++++++++++++++++

"Everything is completed as desired!" the tailor greeted him more relaxed. The dark elf was being polite to the old man, which surprised him, but he did not want to try his luck and get killed and robbed. But the drow did not show any sigh of violence or cruelty. So

it was safe enough. Balok had chosen wood brown material for the cloak and boots and dark silver for the winter clothes, but also told to the tailor that he could use other material to make her more clothes, it could be handy, he said.

"Thank you! You are really a master of your craft." The dark elf was very pleased by the look of the clothes. He could imagine Rose walking with him in those clothes comfortably. The winter clothes looked promising, as did the cloak and the boots. But he did not expect the tailor to make such beautiful dresses from the other materials. The dresses were perfect, and he almost got excited by imagining how perfectly her body would fit in these dresses.

"I suppose your beloved will like her new clothes."

"I did not say she is my beloved." He was confused and did not remember if he accidently said something which indicated that they were intimate. Seeing his confusion the old tailor laughed, but again he went serious out of fear he somehow insulted the drow.

"Your eyes sparkled when you mentioned her." Balok could only nod at his words. He did not know what he felt for Rose, besides the attraction and desire to touch her, but knew that he cared enough for her to protect her. They made a deal that she would come with him, but he did not tell her what exactly their relationship would be. Rose said that she would be anything he desired, but he was not sure what he wanted her to be to him. The slave option seemed too cruel to him, maybe a lover. That one was the option closest to the truth.

"You may be right, but I am not sure what I feel for her." He smiled at the tailor. The old tailor sighted in relief and returned the smile. Balok paid for the clothes, took them and left.

+++++++++++++++++++

Rose was sitting in the cave wrapped in a blanket. It was the only thing Balok left her to cover herself before he went to the city. She was wondering where he was, what he was doing right now. Did he trick her and left her here to die? No, she did not want to believe this. Until now he had never hurt her in any way. She supposed that he had a work to do in the city and prayed to the Lord that they did not connect her escape with him. She did not want to get him into any kind of trouble.

She heard a sound and turned to see Balok approaching her with big bag in his hand. Rose hurried to him and hugged him, not caring that she dropped the blanket and that her warm and naked body was pressed against him.

"Welcome back. I am glad to see you." He was silent and Rose wondered what happened back there or if she somehow insulted him by hugging him. "You can't continue the travel in your dress and thin cloak, so I bought you new a cloak and warm clothes."

"Thank you, thank you very much." She took the bag from him and emptied it carefully with her delicate hands. Rose examined the contents of the bag and took the warm clothes. Once again Balok felt the great desire to prevent her from dressing and take her right now and there, but he let her get dressed. He was sure, it would fit her.

"It´s so warm and fluffy! How much did you spend on this?" she did not want him to spent all his money on her.

"Do not worry, it was not too expensive. You also have other kind of clothes, but for now this dress along with the cloak and boots will be enough." He looked at her. Rose was so happy having new clothes and she was looking at every detail of them. She seemed so innocent and childish that he wondered if she had forgotten the fact that she had escaped and people were probably looking for her. As far as he had heard in the inn, only Madame Ruby was upset because her worker got lost, but nobody knew in which direction Rose escaped when the fire caught the brothel.

"Rose, there is something I would like to know." She turned to face him. He had all her attention, and that was good. "Back in the city I researched about your disappearance and heard from one man that the fire started when someone broke into your room and tried to take you by force. You have to tell me what you know, what you remember." He saw that she was getting uncomfortable and scared, for her eyes stopped sparkling.

"That is the truth. You paid Madame Ruby to give me a whole day off. She wanted to keep her promise. However, the mayor´s son came to the brothel and started to argue with Madame Ruby about my day off. You see, as I told you I was raised in the brothel and last year I came to age. My body was ready to serve the purpose I had in the brothel, but the same year I got really sick before I had my first customer.

I was lying in my bed almost the whole year. Before I got sick, Madame Ruby had a deal with the mayor´s son who, I had heard, was very brutal and wanted to be my first customer. That day when you left, he came and wanted to get me. I tried to stop him from entering, but he was much stronger. As he entered my room, he grabbed me by my hands. I was so scared that I screamed. That was the moment when the fire started. Madame was startled to death, as were the other girls. Even the mayor's son showed some signs of fear. The fire was spreading very fast and one of the fire covered beams fell on him. He was dead straight away. You know the rest."

"That is some kind of magic, of the elemental magic to be exact. Someone set the fire using magic. Tell me Rose, did you ever made an enemy, someone who uses magic?" he was both fascinated and stunned by her story. The person who set the fire must be very powerful, but he did not know if that person was after him or after her.

"No, the only person I made my enemy was the mayor's son and he surely did not use any kind of magic."

"Then I am very sorry, for I may have caused that. I have some enemies, since I am a warrior and use some magic." He relaxed when he found out that she was not the reason the brothel got burned down. He or maybe Madame Ruby or some other prostitute made a mistake which caused the fire. Someone who used magic got into a conflict and must have decided to get revenge by burning down the brothel. But the question was who and why.

"I do understand." And indeed she understood. There was no blame in her eyes, maybe some worry but no blame. Obviously, Rose was more mature than she seemed. He could not blame her. Life in a brothel was really hard and humiliating for women. They had no future, only hopes and dreams. Rose's only hope was to find freedom.

"Are you hungry? I have brought food." Before she could answer him, her stomach growled with anticipation. The dark elf quickly unpacked bread, meat and some fruits. There was only a little talking during their meal, but it was nevertheless pleasant. Rose found out that he was searching someone very important and after that he had to return to his realm. Balok found out that she liked the night time, because of sleep and dreams. Who knows, maybe he could take her all the way to the dark realm, he thought. 

+++++++++++++++++++ 

"I told you, sir. We spent the whole day searching for her." Madame Ruby was trembling while she was trying to explain the situation to a handsome, muscular and blond man. "The girl somehow escaped. All I know is that she is not in the city. If she was, someone would inform us." 

"Then you are more useless than I thought." Although his voice was very quiet one could notice that the blond man was very angry. His gray eyes were searching for any sign of a lie on the face of Madame Ruby. "You had promised that the girl would be broken."

"Yes, she was...last night, a stranger came and asked for a girl. I sent him Rose. He broke her, I swear." Madame Ruby was now frightened to death. And that was the most suitable description, because the man's aura was deadly, transmitting pure destructive energy. Even a stupid person would run away from his presence.

"Indeed she was broken, but only her maidenhead, not her spirit." With that the man took a step toward Madame Ruby. "You had promised me that she would be completely broken and that you knew the right man to do the job."

"Yes, yes...my lord, yes. I promised her to the mayor's only son. His reputation toward women is well known. Last year, however she got sick and I spared her from him. I do not let my girls work while being ill."

"And that stranger took her first last night?" although furious, the blond man was also curious about who that stranger was. Did he help Rose to escape and if he did, then how? Sometimes even the most perfect plans could not be completed. "Who was he? How did he look like?" he crossed his hands, waiting for her answer. 

"I do not know...only Rose did see him..."

"But she escaped, you useless old fool." She could clearly see the Grim Reaper in him. Madame Ruby met him a long time ago, when she was a young prostitute in the same city, searching for customers. Back then she lived in the streets, like some rat, and was almost dead from starvation when she met him. She never got to know him, but quickly found out the two most important things about him. First thing, he was ambitious and was very skillful with dark magic. The second thing, he was seeking a servant who he would pay generously, if she would fulfill the tasks he gave her.

"Forgive me, my lord. The stranger was wearing a hood, so nobody could see his face. But he was very polite and in the morning he paid me one hundred maldas. He must be an elf, or he works for elves." Madame Ruby managed to explain to her lord.

"Maldas, you say. That is a very interesting information. Do you know how many human coins are worth one malda?" her master seemed a bit satisfied, but, she knew that this information would not help her out of trouble. She shook her head.

"No. Then I will make it easy for your worm brain. One malda is worth about ten human coins. That man is either very rich, so he does not care for it much or he was very merciful, when he did pay you one hundred maldas for Rose to have a whole day off." He laughed hard. There was cold sweat on Madame Ruby´s face. She patiently waited for him to stop laughing.

"I think that he was merciful. He must be some nobleman, when he did not take his hood off until he went to Rose's room.

"Or some assassin. The most successful warriors and assassins usually cover their faces. My dear, you welcomed a killer into your brothel."

"Yes, I may have made a mistake, my lord. But...we will find Rose and bring her back here. Then I will complete the task you have given me. Please forgive me."

"Rubina, you know that I forgive you." He drew her close to him and hugged her. She relaxed in his embrace. "Everyone makes a mistake it is natural. Nobody is perfect."

"Thank you master, I..."

"But you will not complete the task. You have had your chance but you´ve missed it." Madame Ruby tried to escape, but he was a lot stronger than her. She screamed before she felt her life was being taken.



The Contrast Ch. 04



People say that the will is what makes you never give up, no matter what happens to you. The will makes you go on, fight for your beliefs and gives you strength. The young girl now came to understand the power of will. Although not used to these conditions, Rose was using every bit of her strength to walk in the deep snow. On the other hand, the dark elf was walking easily like it was but a childs game for him. Maybe it really was, Rose scolded herself for being weak.

"Are you alright? Should we stop for a little rest?" Balok asked always patient with her. She really enjoyed his company, but more frequently she asked herself if she was some kind of burden for him. She really hoped she wasn't.

"No, I am fine." It was almost a week since she had escaped from the brothel and made a deal with Balok to go with him. It was strange for someone of her kind to be in the presence of a drow, but she trusted him. So far he earned her trust and Rose could not feel safer than in his company. Balok Philion, the dark elf who took her innocence and slightly calmed her fear of men. 

"Look, I do understand that you are doing your best, but your body is not used to this kind of travel. I think that you have to rest a bit. Don't worry, every day you are getting stronger and stronger."

"Thank you Balok" she said and looked for some tree stump to sit down. Balok took his time to collect some logs while humming to himself. Rose liked the melody he was humming. It sure was some drow song or something. It was relaxing. Like Balok himself.

Rose was watching him, his muscular body bowing and standing up while he was searching for fire wood. More than once she caught herself dreaming of his naked body pressed to hers. She would not lie to herself and say that she was not attracted to him. To tell the truth, she wanted so badly to touch and feel his body, but knew that this weather would not allow them to be naked.

The same was for Balok, since they started to travel together, he would feel the desire between his legs or wake up with morning wood. Not that he minded, but being hedonist, he wanted some warm place so they could take hours to enjoy each other, not some five minutes in cold weather. 

"If I'm not mistaken, we have food for two more days I think. How far is your destination?" Rose was slightly concerned that they would not have enough food.

"I believe that we need one more day to reach the city. What do we have for food?" he asked as he joined her on the tree stump close to the camp fire. Rose took a look into the bag.

"We have cheese and some vegetables. Will it be enough?"

"It's perfect." The drow said and took two potatoes and started to eat. Rose had to wait for her potato to be roasted to be able to eat it and she watched him. Although she knew that he could easily eat uncooked potatoes, she was still amused by that fact.

"Do you like to eat raw food or are you unable to eat cooked food?"

"Well. It's a matter of choice. Dark elves CAN digest cooked food, but when you are in a battle, you do not have time for cooking food, you know."

"Right now you are not in a battle." Rose chuckled at him, which made him chuckle back. 

"Yea, you are right Rose. I am not in a battle."

"But you could be if you do not change that habit of yours" she poked him in the shoulder. "Really? And what if I don't change my habit? What will you do beauty?" he teased her, his eyes obscured of desire for her body. "This." She smacked him slightly on his butt. "You have to do change your habit."

"And when I do change my habit, what I will gain? You?" oh, how he loved to tease her! As he finished his meal, he snaked his arms around her waist, bringing her close to him. Balok kissed her passionately. She was becoming a better kisser and he really enjoyed her luscious lips. Rose was lost into his kiss as her desire for him grew again. She knew that if she let go she would tear his clothes and make love to him right here in the snow. Slowly she departed from him.

"Soon... I promise we will reach the city soon and you better watch yourself Rose, because you won't be able to stand after I am done with you." They both laughed.

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

'How could this happen?' the blond haired man asked himself. He had planned everything to the very last detail. How could this young stupid girl escape? Everyone he had previously questioned would have told him if she had seen when she fled. It's not like there was another building in flames in the city that day. He carefully investigated, asked every prostitute in the city if they saw Rose escape. And every time he would receive the same answer... nothing. They did not see her escape. Damned!

"Are you sure Candy you did not see Rose?" he asked a red haired prostitute, fifteenth in row. She seemed to him a bit more conscious. He hoped that she would tell him something different. 

"Master, I don't know much.... The fire started suddenly, nobody knows how. That day the son of the mayor came to Madame Ruby and required to have Rose. I don't know details, but I think that Rose was promised to that man, to be the first to have her. But someone came the previous night and paid to have Rose. I do not know the amount of money, but surly it was a lot of money because Madame Ruby promised him that Rose would have a day off. 

"Anything else?" the man was tired and annoyed. He was so annoyed that he would kill this prostitute if he received the same answer one more time. 

"The mayor's son came the following day and insisted to have Rose. He was furious by the fact that she lost her virginity to another customer. He went to her room and broke the door. I know Madame Ruby tried to stop him, but in vain. He already grabbed Rose and she screamed. But then..."

"Yes...go on woman. What happened?" Finally! Something new, something that the other prostitutes failed to notice. He was eager to get that information. 

"Well, as Rose screamed there was some kind of light ball that came from nowhere. Neither do I know what it was, nor how it appeared in the brothel. The light ball had a color of orange and appeared in the corridor on the second floor where I was. And it exploded and the fire started. I tried to damp it down, but it was useless. The fire expanded quickly and caught the beams of the roof. I ran to warn the other girls so they could immediately leave the brothel. In the end the brothel burned down and the mayor's son died in the fire.

"An orange ball of light that came from nowhere?" so that´s what happened. Again the man cursed. That did not supposed to happen. His plan was ruined and Rose managed to escape. "Are you sure Candy?"

"I am sure, master." Although Candy did not know him, she knew two things. Firstly, that Madame Ruby knew him and that he helped her to become the leading woman in the brothel. And secondly, she knew that she did not believe this man. His appearance was scaring her and his aura spoke about the pure darkness of the world. 

"Very well, Candy. You did well. Now I finally know what happened." The man smirked at her. Candy felt a chill spreading down her spine. It was not a pleasant feeling and there was also cold sweat on her forehead. "Maybe I should reward you for the information you gave me, my dear."

"You are kind sir, but I do not need a reward. I am satisfied with food and shelter."

"Oh, but I insist. Come here." Instinctively she backed away. There was something bad, very bad about him. He glared at her. "I said come here!" Candy reluctantly approached him. He bent down to her, as if he wanted to kiss her. But the moment she looked into his eyes, Candy knew what lay behind his stare and tried to scream, but his strong hand covered her mouth, preventing her from screaming. 

"Sorry sweetheart, but I can't let you escape with this. Do you realize what you have said to me? Therefore you must die." In the blink of an eye Candy was captured by the man. She tried to free herself, but did not succeed. After few moments her body was lying on the floor of the house, her face white with an expression of pure horror on it. The man smirked. Let's get back to business, he thought. 

+++++++++++++++++++ 

Fire, there was a huge fire. The fire was spreading very fast, devouring everything and everyone that would be on its way. Screams of frightened people could be heard everywhere. Screams, she could hear screams even from far away. People were suffering. She wanted to know what was happening, wanted to damp down the fire, but could not do so. The next moment she felt people look at her with an expression of complete horror. Their faces were white from fear, eyes wide and their voices trembled.

"You?! It was you who did it!" a man pointed with his trembling finger at her. 

"Me? I did not do it. I want to help you, to save you." 

"Liar! You did this! You tried to kill us, you monster." 

"It was not me. I did nothing." She saw people approaching her. They had weapons in their hands. They wanted to kill her. The man who spoke to her grabbed her wrists and pulled her toward him. She tried to escape, but failed.

"Now you will pay for your crime, witch." Two more men came and using a thick rope they tied her to a nearby tree. She was scared, scared to death. Then the people set fire to the tree. The people laughed at her, their eyes like those of predators, like vultures waiting for the prey to die. "Burn witch, burn for what have you done. The fire started to consume her body while she screamed like mad, wanting to escape.

+++++++++++++++++++

"Rose, Rose wake up." She was startled at first, but when she met his amethyst eyes she relaxed a bit. Rose did not hesitate, and she quickly hugged Balok, seeking some kind of comfort from him. "Shh, it's ok. You had a nightmare. It passed." He wrapped his strong black arms around her and was gently shaking her. 

"It was horrible Balok. I saw buildings on fire and people were screaming. I wanted to help them, but they captured me and wanted to burn me at the stake...like I was some witch. They said that I did it, that I did set the fire." Her voice was trembling. The nightmare was so vivid that she still could feel the heat of the fire, could still feel it on her skin. Her body was soaking wet from sweat.

"You are hot Rose, as if you have a fever. Are you feeling well?" the dark elf was worried. It was similar to the fever she had when they met in the woods. He knew some medical tricks, but was not skilled enough to tell what exactly was wrong with her.

"I am...fine. I am just still shocked because of the nightmare. But there is something. I still feel the heat of the fire, as if it had not disappeared. Does it mean something?" 

"Well, I have been told that when someone has a very strong dream, or in your case a nightmare, it is possible that the body shows some after effects from the dream." He explained to her. But for that kind of event, it is necessary for dream to be very strong and vivid....or for the person to have some kind of supernatural abilities. He touched her forehead and it was still hot, but she seemed to be calmer than moment ago.

"Balok, please hold me. I want to forget that nightmare. It's not one of the nightmares I usually have."

"You frequently have nightmares?" well he could have expected something like that, but did not want to believe that Rose could not relax, even in her dreams.

"Well, I had a lot of nightmares, but usually about men beating, hurting and raping me. I never had a nightmare like this." She explained to him. Balok nodded. He wished that he knew some kind of spell to block nightmares coming to her.

"Do not worry. I am here and I promise you, nothing will happen to you. Now try to go back to sleep. Tomorrow we will arrive at the town." He kissed her on her forehead, never letting her out of his arms. After some time Rose fell to sleep, breathing slow and regular. 'A very unusual dream. She said that she never had this kind of dream before. Was this dream some kind of result to the fire that burned the brothel down back then?' he thought.

Rose never seemed to be scared to him on their journey. Well, she was surprised here and there on some occasions, but never asked him to save her. To tell the truth, Rose was afraid of men ...no surprise there, but every time they were close to eachother she was more and more relaxed. She trusted him. Sometimes he was asking himself if he was a person worth of trust. But then again he knew that, no matter what he would never hurt Rose.

However, there was something about her that was both attracting and scaring him. Something that was still hidden from him. Yes...during their journey they talked a lot, finding out various things about each other, both good and bad. Nevertheless, he still felt that there was something about her, something magical. Two days ago, he found out that she uncovered herself in her sleep. That would not be a big issue if it was not for the fact that they still were in the wood and that it was winter with a lot of snow. On several occasions tried to cover her up again, but Rose unconsciously would throw her blanket off again. And the strange thing was that she wasn't cold at all.

+++++++++++++++++++

A tall, dark figure was walking through the night. The man was cursing silently. Although he had the information about her, he didn't know where the girl went. Sure he was a master when it came to seeking someone, but it was a big challenge to find her. She was powerful, so powerful that her abilities could block her trace. Everything he knew was that her magic was awakened and that his plan was changed, but the man did not want to give up. He had to find her... and kill the bitch. Oh he would enjoy, watching her suffer and die.

There again, was that stranger. Did she go with him? Who was he? Did he really work for the elves, like Madame Ruby said? Damned! He didn't know. Sure that stranger, her deflorist, had enough money to pay for her and give her a day to rest. Once again, like Madame Ruby had said, only Rose saw the stranger, but did not tell anybody, or did not have time to tell. Maldas...hm. The person used elven gold coins to pay which meant that he surely had some connection with them, or he himself was an elf.

As for the other prostitutes, the man decided that he killed enough of them. Why wasting useless lives when they could not give him more information. Fifteen out of thirty women were dead and he considered it as doing the remaining prostitutes a favor by killing their colleagues. Besides, the spared prostitutes were free to do what they wanted, if they wanted to continue with their work, it was their decision. It was not his business.

Maybe he could look for some information about the stranger. Had anyone seen him and what he had told? The dark figure made a decision. He would investigate a bit about that strange visitor and see who and what he was. He strongly felt if he would find the stranger then he would also find Rose. He disappeared into the night, starting to search houses and buildings in the city. 



The Contrast Ch. 05



Longs legs in heavy boots were crushing branches in the snow. Two travelers covered in warm cloaks were arriving at their destination. The big gates of the town could be seen despite the snowy fog. Soon they will have finished their journey, and be separated.

"Here we are Rose. This is the town I was talking about. I need to find someone in this town, before I return to my people." 

"Is that person very important to the drows?" Somehow the closer they got to the town, the more worried Rose was. She got used to Balok's company. He was easy to talk to and she always felt comfortable with him. Although they never talked about it, Rose was sure that they would part as soon as they were in the town. After all the drow did not promise her anything.

"He is very wise and we need his advices because we fear that some kind of enemy threatens us." Balok himself did not believe in such a thing. Drows were one of the most powerful races in the world, but even they had some kind of weakness. At least they wanted to check what was happening on the upper world. That was the reason why they sent Balok. He was one of the best scouts, an excellent worrior, and magic user.

"I wish I could help you somehow," she said. Rose really wished that she could. She hated the feeling of being useless and weak, but there was nothing she could do about it. Madame Ruby had made sure that Rose knew as little as possible. Her girls had to be avaible and weak, not strong, smart and independent. That was not good for the job.

"We are here. I recommend that you put on the hood. Maybe someone had heard of the girl who had escaped from the brothel." Balok never used the word prostitute. He did not want to insult her and Rose was glad for that, but also knew that it was the reality in which she lived. As long as she could not free herself or was declared dead, she was still formally a prostitute. She nodded to him and put on the hood, before they knocked at the gates. 

"Who is there? What do you seek?" The man asked from the top of the gate. He looked first at Balok, who covered his head and then at Rose. 

"We are just two tired travelers who seek a place to stay. We mean no harm or trouble." he answered calmly. The man whispered something to his companion and after a couple of minutes, the gates opened letting them enter.

"Is it always like that for you?" Rose asked him.

"When you hide your face, people don´t let you enter immediately. You have to assure them that you mean no harm."

"I understand." Rose walked close to him while she was searching the surroundings for any signs of danger. She did not know whether anyone knew something about the incident in the brothel in her city.

"First of all we will look around for an inn. We are both exhausted and I bet that you can hardly stand on your feet." She wanted to say she was not, but her body spoke a different language. Most of all she longed for a hot bath. During the last days and nights in the woods, she had often thought of the hot spring in the cave. Rose had also thought of what she had done to Balok that day and smiled.

"It would be nice if they had a hot bath in the inn." She answered him and smiled.

"Even better if they had a bath for two." Balok winked at her. He also recalled what happened at the hot spring and wanted to feel her mouth on his body again. His desire for Rose had grown stronger during the last days and he promised himself that he won´t let her go once they were at the inn. He would make sure she won´t be able to stand up when he finished the whole thing.

++++++++++++++++++

"I ´m asking you again, what was it that the drow wanted from you?" the blond-haired man demanded from the old tailor. The poor old man was scared to death by this strange man. He tried to remember that day when the drow came into his shop.

"He asked for warm travel clothes for a female, nothing else."

"What did she look like?" The man asked. 

"I did not even see her. He just gave me her body measurements and size. He said that she was unable to come herself. I made the clothes for him. He paid the money and left the shop. That is all!" 

"Do you know old man that Madame Ruby's brothel was burned down and that one of the girls has escaped?" 

"My God...what a terrible incident! I've heard of it, but I did not know that the whole building was destroyed. All I´ve heard is that Madame Ruby was killed that day. Maybe the same person who set the fire has killed her...." 

The blond-haired man stared at him. This old fool didn't know much. He would kill him like all the others but first he had to make sure he got all the information from the old man that he needed.

"Tell me old man, did you know Madame Ruby very well?"

"Yes, I was frequently one of her customers but that is history. I stopped coming to her brothel twenty years ago because I was no longer capable of having sex." 'Twenty years ...that would be well before Rose was even born...so maybe the old man does not know the slightest about her. But he had to make sure.

"Did you know that Madame Ruby had some new girls?"

"I knew it, but what should it mean to me, when I can´t have sex any longer? My time passed." The Old man answered. 

'Indeed... you old fool!' thought the blond-haired man as he walked a few steps towards the old tailor. Before he could do anything he heard a child's voice. There in the back of the room stood a little boy.

"Grandpa, who is this?" the boy asked. The stranger turned to face the old man, then to the little boy, then back to the old man.

"You are a lucky man...a very lucky man." he said before he left the tailor shop. He had to track down the drow to find out whether he had anything to do with Rose's escape.

++++++++++++++++++

'Ah, this is wonderful.' Rose thought. She and Balok were lucky to find an inn which had a hot bath and the inn keeper demanded a fair price of them. Although she was very tired, she immediately wanted to take a bath before dinner. The night was quiet and had only just begun.

She wondered where the drow went. After they had rented a room with a double bed ,she knew to what purpose, Balok said that he had to do something, and that they would meet for dinner. He also warned her to open the door for anyone since he had seen that some men had been watching her.

Rose got out of the bath and wrapped herself in a towel. She heard the inkeeper as he called her to dinner. She quickly put on one of the dresses Balok had bought for her and went downstairs to meet him.

"Balok, I am ready...." her voice trailed off when she saw the same men who had been staring at her. Her old fears returned again.

"Well, well... what a lovely sight we have here guys." One of the men said. He had dirty, blond hair and green eyes, like a snake. Actually, he looked like a snake. Rose took a step back. "Hey, hey... where are you going sugar? We want to play with you."

"I am waiting for somebody... leave me alone!" she turned on her heel and hurried to the room as they followed her. She entered the room and locked it but they were trying to get into the room by force. Obviously they wanted to rape her and she cried out for help. The next moment the door cracked and the men entered the room. 

"No! Let me go!" Rose screamed as one of them pinned her to the floor while the others laughed. She tried to break free, but she could not. The man tore up the upper part of her dress.

"Listen bitch, you better behave yourself or..."

"Or what?" a familiar voice said. They all looked at the door where Balok stood with his arms crossed while glaring at the men. The men froze because the dark elf had not hidden his face under the hood.

"Balok..." Rose whispered. The next moment Balok fought against all five men who were in the room. They must have thought that they could beat him but they were wrong. One by one four men escaped from the room severely beaten, leaving their leader to the mercy of the drow. With one hand Balok held the man firmly by the neck and with the other hand he placed a knife to his throat.

"What is the meaning of this?" His voice was calm and deadly.

"I...just wanted to have some fun. She looks like a pussy to be fucked."

The man had trouble breathing for the drow held him brutally by the neck.

"If I ever see you again near my woman, I will cut off your manhood. Understood?" The man nodded and as Balok let him go he ran away without looking back.

"Sorry I am late. I had planned to be back earlier."

Rose could not answer but ran forward to embrace the dark elf. He held her while stroking her hair. Once again she felt safe.



The Contrast Ch. 06



"Rose, it's alright. No one is going to hurt you." Balok was trying to calm her. She was trembling like mouse. No wonder she was afraid of men. He recalled her scared expression when they first met and let sigh. Balok wanted to see her happy expression, wanted to see her happy and safe. 

"No it won't. When we apart I will once again have miserable life. They will find out that I am prostitute, they will hurt me. I would rather die than live like prostitute." she sobbed. "I just want to have a normal life. Is it too much to ask?"

"No. Of course not! Every living being wants that. I promised to protect you and I will." It seemed that Rose calmed a bit. 

He was more than glad because of that. It also worried him that he almost revealed his dark side. Well, being a dark elf, it was quite normal for him to be dangerous and intimidating to the enemy, but Balok did not want to lose Rose's trust and for her to be afraid of him. 

The situation was being pretty ironic, she should be afraid of him and run for her life. Instead she was comfortable in his presence and never thought about leaving his side. Not until she said that they would move apart. Yes, Rose trusted him, but Balok somehow wished for a moment that it was different.

"Rose, I have to take bath, don't worry. I am not going nowhere." Rose nodded and let him go. Taking opportunity that water was still warm and was not dirty, the dark elf took off his cloth. 

Rose sat on the bed watching with amazement how water drops were licking his night, muscular body. He was so handsome. It was no surprise she wished to kiss, hug and touch him. He was like sweet poison, just asking to be drunk. He saw her expression of desire and quickly sat up from bath. Balok took a few steps forward and in moment he was on the edge of the bed.

"Balok what..." she tried to say something, but his sensual lips blocked her. He leaned toward her, never stopping the kiss. She was surprised by his action, but not scared. Her white hands came around his torso. Rose didn't care her cloth got wet because the drow did not dry himself. She only wanted to be naked like him. 

"My dear, I think I know the cure for your fear. It's black, very hard and powerful."

Rose blushed a little and smiled. She reached and grabbed his 'cure' stroking him slowly. The drow moaned and hungrily attacked her breasts through her cloth. 

"Take it off. Take my cloth off." Oh, she did not want to wait. Balok could not agree more. In one movement he took her torn cloth off. He would buy her new cloth anyway if needed. 

"Hello ladies, did you miss me?" he asked before he took one nipple in his mouth while teasing other with his fingers. Rose arched her back and let a moan. Oh this was music for his ears. His other hand travelled down. Her eyes went wide. Balok found her treasure and was fingering with passion.

"Balok...I need you." She stroked him faster and he though that he would finish before her and he did not liked that idea. He captured her hand on his member, blocking her. Rose looked at him.

"I want you Rose. I want for us both to see stars." His voice was deep and filled with passion. Rose let go of him and kissed his nipple. He parted her legs and, while looking her in the eyes he went into her. 

They both moaned. This was different than her first time, but it was non the less pleasurable. In one moment Balok went out of her the moment she came and painted her belly with his liquit of life. Both tired, they fall asleep very quickly.

Once again Balok managed to control himself. Although Rose said she would be anything he wished, that didn't mean that he would make her pregnant. He cared for her, but his feelings for Rose was not deep and he would not allow for his child to be a bastard. 

It was similar to self insult for drow to make woman pregnant and leave her. No. He wanted to be with Rise and enjoy with her.

++++++++++++++++++

It was hard to find any track, any clue about Rose. He could feel her presence in burned logs covered with snow. For a while he was using his powers, his special abilities to at least find some track. Something which would indicate where she went. Now he was holding piece of wood. It had her smell...and a bit of her power. He had to hurry.

Silver hair man smirked. The smell indicated the direction. The girl went north. But that was not everything. He also smelled other's scent. It was scent of elf kind. That old bitch was right. He had some connection with elves. He was an elf. But the question was which kind of elf.

He surely could not walk in some elven place and kill someone, like he used to. The thing which worried him the most was the fact that elves could easily feel his presence since also was of magic kind. No. It was too risky. He had to make some plan how to get some information or find some clue. 

He was very powerful, but his power was his weakness in this kind of situation. Well at least he was sure that Rose went north. Soon little dove, soon and would take her power. The man smiled and continued his way.



The Contrast Ch. 07



The city was bigger than the town she grew up in. Rose was stunned by the style and beauty of the buildings. Even the smallest cottage was amazingly built and decorated. With the first rays of sun, the sight of the town was breathtaking. It looked like the town was covered with golden dust. But what really caught her attention was the sight of humans, elves, dwarfs, and other races walking around unhindered without any conflicts. They all were talking together like they were old friends. Rose liked that. In her small town the different races were not so friendly toward each other. They would tolerate each other as long as they had money, power, or if they had made some kind of peace agreement.

There was a movement and she turned around. Balok woke up and looked at her with a sleepy smile. Rose returned his smile. He truly knew the art of distraction and last night he once again calmed her fear of men. He made her feel safe and protected.

"Good morning Rose."

"Good morning Balok." As he yawned and stretched, Balok noticed that she was looking out of the window. Her side of the bed was facing the small window with its magnificent view of the streets. He came closer, embraced her and together they looked at the bustle in the streets.

"It´s beautiful Balok, everything here is shining in the sun. Would an artist paint this sight, the result would be a masterpiece."

"Do you know the name of this city?" he asked and Rose shook her head. During their journey, he had never mentioned the name of it. Maybe he somehow wanted to keep that as a secret. Several times Rose had wanted to ask him about it, but simply decided to let it be and to trust him. She knew she was safe with him wherever they would go.

"In all languages it means the same, but humans call it 'The Crossroads'. Do you know why?"

"I think I know why. I can see many different races inhabitate this city, and they seem to tolerate and accept each other. There is no hatred in this city. It is completely opposite to my hometown."

"Exactly, when I wanted to enter your town, the guard did not want to let me in. I had to pay him a big amount of money." As he mentioned the money, Rose recalled how they met for the first time and felt uncomfortable all of a sudden. Balok was puzzled by her change of mood. Did he say something wrong?

"How much have you paid?" Rose whispered. "How much have you paid for me?" He swallowed hard because he never thought that she would ask him this question. She turned to face him, waiting for an answer.

"Converted to human money it was about one hundred gold coins." He knew what to expect. Her eyes went wide and the colour drained from her face. Rose could not believe what she had just heard and sheer astonishment was written on her face. The whole time... ever since they had met he had only pitied her. All her life Rose had pitied herself and her miserable life in the brothel, but she couldn´t stand the feeling of somebody else pitying her.

"I should have known. How stupid I was!"

"Rose..." Balok didn't like the undertone in her voice and he certainly didn't like her desperation.

"You should have left me in the snow to die. I have pitied myself for too long."

"I never pitied you Rose. Never."

"Then why did you pay such an amount of money to Madame Ruby?! Did you think that it would be enough for her to show me mercy?" She screamed at him, yelled... she almost attacked him.

"As I said, I never pitied you. But I had to pay her anyway."

"I know that. I just wanted to know why," she hissed furiously.

"Because I wanted you to have enough time to rest and think! I cared about your pleasure!"

This surprised Rose. She never expected this. "You remember that I said I would make your first time memorable. I never pitied you. I only wanted for you to have a positive memory of your first time. I couldn't do anything, apart from showing you that, doesn´t matter what you are, you can still enjoy the joining between male and female. That is all."

Now they were both surprised by their own reactions and the reaction of the other. Balok was astonished by her rage and the fact that she thought he pitied her. Rose was surprised by his sincerity and by the fact that he had no other choice. Before one of them could make a reply, they heard a loud knocking at the door and then the voice of the innkeeper telling them to be quiet and to solve their marriage problem. Balok told him that they were sorry and that they would be quiet. Then he fell on the bed laughing and holding his sides. Rose joined him in the laughter.

"Do we really seem like a married couple?" Balok asked Rose when he managed to calm down.

"I guess we do. Do you mind?" Rose seemed to cheer up.

"No... not at all. If I had a quarrel with my wife, I would certainly think of ways and means to stop it...," Rose knew that kind of tone in his voice. The thought was tempting, but she was hungry and wanted to explore the town.

"Balok, I am hungry. Would you join me for breakfast, before you start your search for that person?"

"You think you are hungry?! My dear, you know nothing about hunger. I am starving! Do you know how much energy is needed to perform the magic from last night?"

Again they had to laugh and when they had calmed down once more, they got dressed and went downstairs to get some food.

++++++++++++++++++++++

This was odd, the blonde-haired man thought. All tracks he could find seemed to indicate that Rose and her companion were on the way to 'The Crossroads', which was a little strange. Her powers were waking up, but certainly she was not completely aware of them. If she knew... if she only knew what she possessed. As for her companion, apart from being elven kind the blonde-haired man knew only very little about him, which meant things failed to run according to his plan. Was he an inhabitant of 'The Crossroads' or was he just passing by? He would find out, that was for sure.

The blonde man was very tired and hungry. So far he didn´t have the chance to feed him self and it could still take days until he could satisfy his burning hunger and as long as he was searching in the town he could not settle down.

He had to hurry and knew that he would only be able to find a few small animals on his way through the forest. Furthermore, it would exhaust him even more if he had to use his magical abilities. The blonde-haired man cursed. First of all, he had to find a way to satisfy his hunger. Moreover, he would have to be very careful when he was in 'The Crossroads'. The town was well known for its neutral politic. The inhabitants respected each other regardless of their race and would always cooperate and help each other. There were even half-breeds, actually a lot of half-breeds.

It was clear to him that Rose knew almost nothing about 'The Crossroads', but the real question was what a drow was seeking there. Drows rarely went to the surface; they did not have the habit of going out frequently. One more thing about drows was that when they did go to the surface, they usually would go as a group. That drow was either strange, or a loner, or stupid, or very powerful to be able and willing enough to go on his own. The blonde-haired man was lost in his thoughts. Maldas... the drow used the coins of the light elves, which meant that he was very well paid or rich. Drows did have their own coins, but other races usually wouldn't accept them.

The drow... he and the blonde-haired man were very much alike. Both of them practiced dark magic, belonged to one of the races that possessed great beauty and charm, and they both...well...did not like the sun. He wondered why the drow took Rose's virginity and did not break her spirit. Drows were best known for being one of the merciless and cruel races in the world. Did he actually show mercy to Rose, when they met? That thought made him feel sick to the core. That was completely opposite to his reputation. He had maldas, so whatever his job was, was very well paid. In the drow society there were only a few very well paid jobs and none of them were nice.

Although it was winter the sun was still strong enough to weaken him. Damned! He had to either settle his growing hunger, or find some shelter and wait until he would be able to continue his journey. The blond-haired man hoped he won't be too late to find his target. He sent prayers to every demon and evil spirit he could remember to aid him in his quest. Lucky for him the forest was dense with a lot of trees so that he was not fully exposed to the sun. On his way he saw a cave, probably a wolf cave, and hurried into it. This would be good enough until he could continue his journey.

++++++++++++++++++++++

"Balok, this was delicious! I have never tasted this kind of food." They sat in the kitchen, enjoying their meal. Rose liked the pastries they had in the inn. Never before did she taste sweets. Balok wondered if he had enough free time to take her on a walk to see the town. There were various buildings and places in this town he would like to show her, but he knew that this was not the main purpose of his presence here. He had to find Vetehinen, the person he was looking for. When he started his journey he was searching for some kind of advice, he needed a person he could trust.

"Rose, we can take a little walk through the town, but later on I have to go and find the person I seek."

"Will it take long to find him?" Rose wanted to know.

"Don't know. I have yet to find out where he is...," he confessed. Balok wondered if it would be all right for her to stay behind and he did not want take a risk. What if the innkeeper couldn't look after Rose? He recalled the previous night when he briefly left the inn in order to take care of something and came back just in time to stop those bullies from raping her. As if she could read his mind, Rose touched his shoulder which distracted him from his thoughts.

"I understand. Don't worry! I will try to avoid any kind of trouble while you are gone."

"But Rose, are you sure?"

"Yes, I will be here and wait for you. I shall help the innkeeper in the kitchen and to clean up."

"Then I will try to find that person as fast as possible and we will have dinner in our room." He stood up from his chair and winked at her. Rose blushed and smiled at him. After all, Balok could not always stay close to her and be her babysitter and Rose knew that. She had to take care of herself and find some way to be useful here at the inn. Rose stood up and kissed him passionately. Balok returned the kiss with delight. They remained like that until they felt the need for air.

"See you later, my sweet Rose!" he said before he took his weapons, a long sword and a magic ball, and went out.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

My sweet Rose..., Balok thought. Since when did he call her HIS sweet Rose? Where did this idea come from? Sure... he liked the idea, but he didn't know whether he had the right to call her that. They were lovers and travel companions, but he wondered if it was alright for Rose to be with him. He was more than flattered that he was her first man and also the first person she trusted. Somehow he was worried whether it was wise to keep her close to him. He cared enough for Rose to question himself whether she was safe in his presence or if she could have a better life without him.

He simply was used to be alone. It was not that he ever felt lonely, but from his experience he knew it was easier to be alone. When he needed a female, Balok would usually have some kind of passion adventure, or simply ask for a prostitute. There were many reasons for that. First, he did not like drow females at all. He could still recall his first encounter which made him avoid further experiences. It was not as if he was not appealing to women of other races, but the fact that he was a drow did frighten most of them. Only a few very brave and adventurous females would let him be their lover. Maybe he was attracted to Rose because he was her first and wanted to protect her. Was this some kind of possession?

The dark elf was deep in his thoughts while he was walking through the streets. Not just an ordinary town but also a town full of magic and power. There were both white and black magic, but their adepts and masters were not allowed to fight each other, or attack a person with no magical abilities. So if he got himself into some duel, he would have to rely on his sword. He personally believed that he would not have to fight, but you could never know. Even here, some people were always interested in fighting, especially in dark and hidden streets.

Suddenly, the snow below his boots elevated forming a snowball. Balok looked at it. What was this? Whose magic was this? The snowball hovered a few moments before it moved, like someone invisible threw it, and landed a few inches in front of him. He went to the point where the snowball fell to the ground, and there was already a new snowball. The new one, like the previous, was thrown a few inches in front of him. This is some sort of a guide, thought Balok, but where? Who was leading him and whereto? The only way to find out was to follow the snowballs. So he did. He followed the snowballs which always seemed to be waiting for him to approach them.

This was a bit unusual, but it was fine. Balok never felt a presence of danger in this magic and he had a lot of experience when it came to the use of magic. Like a dog, he could smell any kind of danger, no matter whether it was a magical or physical danger. This seemed more like some kind of game, but there was no child around to perform this. He knew there was a difference whether a child or an adult wielded magic. The further he went, the darker the streets were. Alright, so the person was living in some not so well known place.

'I know that you are here young drow.' Balok heard a voice in his head. That surprised and scared him a bit. He knew about mind readers and telepaths, but never met someone with that kind of power. They were very rare and usually were suspicious towards others. Balok paused for a moment to take a look at his surroundings, but could see nothing except houses. He could not find the source of the voice. It was a male voice, almost feminine, but a male voice nonetheless. The snowball was levitating in front of him. 'Yes, I am the one throwing snowballs. It is a great winter game. Just follow the snowballs and you will find me...' the voice said.

That was interesting. Balok smiled, this would be an interesting challenge. He loved challenges and riddles and this seemed like a combination of both. The dark elf continued to follow the snowballs which were flying in front him, showing him the way. He didn't care that his boots were covered in snow or that the area was very quiet. He only wanted to find Vetehinen and he believed that it was he who spoke to him. And if he had to fight, he would not hesitate to do that. He had to face anything to get the informations he needed from Vetehinen. The sooner he came back, the better.



The Contrast Ch. 08



When you are searching, you will find what you are looking for. Sometimes you will get yourself in trouble, and you will find out that what you are looking for is just an illusion. Sometimes it's pure luck that will help you to find what you are looking for and sometimes it's fate. But all in all, you shall achieve your aim. Balok knew he was close to his destination. Very close actually, judging by the way the snowballs would appear and he was right. They were getting slightly bigger now each time and their round shape changed to that of an arrow. He focused his attention on nothing but those arrows. He would sense some magic here and there on his way, but knew that magic was not directed towards him and meant no harm. 

Suddenly the snowballs stopped which made him stop as well. The dark elf took a look at his surroundings. He was standing in the center of a circle of houses, old but well preserved and cute. This area seemed modest. With his amethyst coloured eyes he searched carefully for any sign of magic or, in this case, snowballs. Nothing. While observing the houses, he saw an old manor house with big windows and blue walls. It was strikingly different from the other houses. Was this Vetehinen's house? There was only one way to find out. The drow took a few steps and came to the front door of the house. Before he could knock at the door, it opened in order to let him enter.

'Come in stranger. You are welcome in my home.' Again Balok heard the voice in his head. The dark elf entered the house while the door was closing behind him. Balok found himself in a bright entrance hall with interesting pictures on the walls and full of wooden furniture. Well... the owner of the house obviously liked warm and comfortable things. 'Come upstairs. I am waiting for you.'

"And I can't wait to finally meet you and hear what you can tell me." Balok answered and hurried up the stairs which were on the end of the entrance hall. Upstairs was a corridor with a couple of doors, but only one door was open and there was light in the room. The dark elf hurried into the room, where he encountered a slim middle aged man sitting at a small table. His hair was turquoise green and reached to the middle of his back. He had a mustache and a pointed beard and bushy eyebrows. His eyes were deep blue, so deep blue that you could lose yourself in them without having a clue what the man might be thinking. The man smiled when he saw Balok.

"Hello. Please have a seat. We have so much to talk about."

++++++++++++++++++++

Today the inn's kitchen was filled with a wonderful smell of baked pastries with dried fruits. Small and delicate hands accomplished magic with dough on the kitchen table. The young beautiful woman was dedicated to her work. Rose was happy. She didn't know how long it would take Balok to find the wise man, and she wanted...no... decided to be useful and to help the innkeeper in the kitchen by preparing pastries. So she offered her help to the innkeeper who accepted it.

"You really know how to make pastries. I am impressed." The Innkeeper was a calm and good natured man in his early forties. He promised to the drow that he would keep her safe and sound, but never expected her to help him. He and his family could handle all the work in the inn without help, but he saw how determined Rose was about it and gave her the task to make the pastries and to clean the dishes.

"Thank you sir. I just couldn't sit in the room and do nothing." Well, with your attention and diligence you will be an excellent housewife." He smiled at her. Rose was slightly taken aback at this comment. She had never ever considered being a housewife. Who would take a former prostitute as a wife? She was sure that almost every man would leave her as soon as he learned of her past. No... nobody would want her, maybe as a mistress but never as a wife. And then there was Balok, her first lover and only customer. Rose was sure that he didn't have any deeper feelings than physical attraction for her.

"Thank you sir, but I think I will be happy to have a job and a place to live." She took a piece of dough and formed a shell shape of it. She was afraid to expect more than that for her life. Her escape from the brothel itself was a miracle. Actually, half accident and half miracle and Rose didn't want to try her luck.

"You can work here in the kitchen and we could give you a room to stay, but that would be wrong. Such a lovely and diligent girl like you should not have to spend the whole life on its own." Rose chuckled at this. If he only knew, if he only knew about her. The innkeeper would definitely change his opinion about her. Surely, she knew how to cook and clean, but that alone would not make her a good housewife. Every girl in the brothel had to learn these skills. The innkeeper noticed her discomfort.

"I am sorry if I insulted you or made you feel uncomfortable. What was your name again, girl?"

"Rose..." she answered.

"And the surname?"

"I...I don't have one." The man arched an eyebrow. Rose tensed, she didn't want to reveal too much about herself, fearing to be captured and returned to her city. She had to say something... anything.

"Miss, are you alright?"

"I don't have a surname because I was a slave." Rose was white as a sheet. "I was a woman´s slave; born in slavery and that is the reason why I don't have a surname. One day, there was a huge fire in the house where I and my mistress lived; almost everything burned down to the ground and that day I escaped.

"Poor child. You have been through a lot. Do not worry, I won't tell anybody about this. You have my word on it. But please, tell me how you met the drow? It seems to me that you know each other."

"I met him in the woods. It was freezing cold that night and he helped me; otherwise I would have frozen to death." Well, that was at least half true. They did met in the woods, but it was not their first meeting. Rose didn't like the idea of lying, but also didn't want reveal too much, so she told him as much as she could. The innkeeper let her continue with her work and went back to his duty, preparing the meat he planned to serve for dinner. Rose was done with the dough and took it to the oven. The fire in the oven was illuminating the kitchen and ready for the pastries. Although she was very careful placing the brass into the oven, a small flame caught her left palm.

"Watch out!" yelled the innkeeper and tore her away from the fire pit. "You´ve got a...burn..." He was sure that he saw a flame scorching her hand. But on her hand was no scorch mark; her palm was white as a snow and intact. Rose stared at him confused.

"I don't feel anything. There is no burn." She showed him her palm and the man carefully observed it, but there was nothing. "I am sorry. It must have been my imagination. After all, my eyes are not as good as they used to be."

Rose only nodded. They continued with their work. She felt uncomfortable; not because she almost got burned, but rather because the flame actually caught her palm. She expected to feel pain, but there was nothing, not even a trace of the fire on her palm. She would not discuss this matter with the innkeeper. 'I have to talk with Balok when he comes back,' she thought, looking at her palm.

++++++++++++++++++++++

"Well, what can you tell me? What kind of danger is threatening us?" Balok was curious to know what was going on. But more than that, he wanted to get back to Rose, more precisely, back into her embrace and her warm soft body.

"I can't tell you, because I am not that powerful. All I know is, that there is a battle between your people and other races that prefer the darkness."

"I do know that much... tell me something that I don't know. You call yourself a wise man." He was annoyed. Peace was such a rare thing. More than 100 years ago the war between the drows, elves, and dwarves came to an end. Neither the elves nor the dwarves were a real threat to the drows. They would usually fight for territories or for political reasons. No, the threat was coming from somewhere else.

"Young drow, be patient! After all, you are the messenger for your people."

"That is the reason why you have to tell me what is going on."

"Dark magic grows with the power of the night. Your kind is practising dark magic; the dark magic is the threat."

"You want to say that one of my own kind wants to cause chaos? That is ridiculous! Even drows are not that violent to provoke their own doom."

"I am not talking about drows. There are other races that practise dark magic. Do you know any other race?"

Balok thought for a moment. He wasn't an expert, but knew some races that were very powerful and were practising various forms of magic. But one race came into his mind like a thunderbolt. The dark elf´s face lost some colour. He swallowed hard, trying to find his voice.

"V.... Vampires! They are threatening us?"

Vetehinen only nodded and his deep blue eyes were watching Balok, as his eyes widened in shock. For the first time the young drow was worried. Vampires were as powerful as drows; the main Difference was that drows could survive in the sunlight, vampires rarely could. Only the strongest had the ability to move around freely in the daylight.

"Why would vampires want to threaten us? Why would they want to attack us? Never before was there any kind of battle of war between us."

"For centuries, the vampires are planning to take the magic of the dark elves and to enslave them. They believe by doing that, they become more powerful and also gain the ability to survive in the sunlight. You have to warn your people. There is nothing else I have to tell you."

"You should have told me that in the first place. You didn't have to keep me in uncertainty."

"I first wanted to check, if they sent someone that is able to think clearly and now I know." Vetehinen smiled at Balok who quickly got up and reached for a bag of coins.

"No. I am not doing this for money."

"Then what do you want?" Balok knew, whenever someone would visit a sage or clairvoyant, he or she would want something in return if it was not money; there was always something. He waited patiently for Vetehinen to answer his question.

"I want to meet the girl that accompanies you. There is something I want to see," he calmly said.

"How do you know that I took someone with me and that it would be a girl?"

"Ah... that is easy young drow. You smell of her body and judging by the intensity of the smell, it was only a few hours ago since you were with her."

"How the hell can you know that?! Are you a werewolf or something?" Balok didn't like this; despite his jobs and missions, he regarded his intimacy always as a private matter. It was nobody's business with whom he shared his bed and therefore Vetehinen´s statement annoyed him.

"I am a sage, remember? And by the way, this is not a request. It's just my curiosity; but if you do bring her here, I will give you some advices how to fight the vampires and how to use their weakness against them.

Balok was speechless. What should he do? He finally had the information he was looking for; but this was something completely new to him. Indeed, he was an excellent fighter, but he had never fought a battle against vampires. Certainly he knew about them, and he also knew about their magical abilities. It took him by surprise that they were planning to take the drow territory. Neither did he want Rose to be drawn into this matter, nor did he want to bring her to Vetehinen. It was not just the promise which he had given her. There was a new feeling in his heart; a feeling which let him to see Vetehinen as a man who might be interested in Rose. Was that jealousy?

"Alright, I will bring her to you. But you won't hurt her! Understand?" Balok finally said, his eyes searching for any kind of danger from the sage but Vetehinen smiled.

"All I want is to talk to her. The girl is all yours, if you really feel that way." Vetehinen also got up.

"However, does she know you? Does she know your true self... the one that you are now and the one that you were?"

"She knows enough for now." Balok said as he stood in the doorway. Once again he looked at the sage, before he left the room.

++++++++++++++++++++

'By the nine hells... this can't be happening.' The power was wakening and it was happening very fast. Damn you bitch, I won't let you succeed!' thought the blonde man. He was doing his best to reach "The Crossroads", but he was very weak. He needed to feed; he needed blood... human blood. His strength was down to the limit. The vampire was sick of feeding on animals. They were weak and disgusting. There was also one more reason why he preferred human blood. He loved to watch the expression on The faces of his victims. To watch their fear, horror, disbelief; the begging for mercy, and the desperation on their faces. Yes... that was the most exciting thing; sometimes he would also rape his victims, if they were females, while drinking their blood.

He remembered how much it had exited him when he had seen or touched Meadora. Oh, how sexy and intimidating she had been. Her body was that of a goddess and would always make him horny and desperate and they really had a good time together. But all that was now history. Meadora was dead now and he had to take care of that little bitch who escaped from the brothel. He would torture her, nice and slowly and in the end he would take her power and her blood. He didn't know what to do with the drow yet, but he surely would have to do something. He wondered if the drow was powerful; he might be interested in taking his power and his blood, of course. The blonde vampire never tasted blood of a dark elf, but it's a good thing to try new things once in a while and you would never know whether you are going to like it or not.

Suddenly the vampire sensed someone´s presence. He turned around andsaw a young woman with ginger coloured hair, black eyes; she was wearing a long black dress. 'A witch... well, better than nothing', he thought. He approached her slowly. The woman saw him and smiled at him with a seductive smile. The vampire knew what kind of effect he had on women and this one was no exception.

"Hello beautiful, what are you doing here all alone? Are you not afraid of the dark?"

"Only a child would be afraid of the dark. I am a grown up woman."

"Indeed you are, indeed..." he said while looking at her curves. Apart from her blood he wanted to have some pleasure and she seemed willing enough. It would take him only a few minutes to convince her and have his way with her. "But my lady, I insist to escort you to your destination. You would not reject me, would you?"

"I would never reject an offer from such a handsome man like you. I just hope that this won´t be all you can offer me."

They walked together and talked. When it came to masking his powers, the vampire was truly a master of his art. Right now he was concealing his powers; so the witch thought he was just an attractive human male. She told him her name and that she was heading for "The Crossroads" where she was living. 'What a coincidence', he thought, 'we are heading to the same destination.' Patiently, he was waiting for the right moment; when it finally came, he attacked with full force and killed her. 'She is not a powerful witch,' he thought as he drank her blood. She was only a shape shifter, nothing more. She was not even worth of taking her power. 'Ah... this is much better,' he thought. Rejuvenated he let her body fall to the ground, now pale as the snow. Now he could do anything he wanted.



The Contrast Ch. 09



Rose was exhausted. The whole day she was either helping the innkeeper in the kitchen, or she was cleaning the inn. Nevertheless, she was pleased with the result. The kitchen and the whole inn were clean and shining, the customers had their stomachs filled, and she even got some meat and sweets as a reward. Rose decided to prepare a delicious dinner for the two of them, using the meat and sweets she got plus some cheese and vegetables. She could have asked for some wine, but she didn't have the money. Nonetheless, Rose was sure that Balok would enjoy everything she had prepared. It was almost night time when she had everything ready. She wondered where Balok was and when he would return.

She sighed and dropped on the chair, her eyes closed. The incident in the kitchen came back to her mind´s eye. The innkeeper was right. She SHOULD have got a burn, but there was nothing at all. As if she was imune to the fire. Rose was confused and worried. She had to tell Balok about that. Surely, being of elven kind, he definitely had some magical abilities and some kind of knowledge about magic. She was human, so this was weird; the fire was supposed to leave some kind of mark on her hand. She was also glad, that the innkeeper thought he imagined the whole thing. She knew that she couldn't explain to him what happened.

The door to their room opened and her dark lover entered with a thoughtful expression on his face. He smiled as he saw her, showing his snow white, slightly sharpened teeth. Rose wondered if he had found the person he was seeking and what that person actually told him.

"Hello Rose," he said, "did you get bored while I was gone?"

"No, I helped the innkeeper in the kitchen." Balok frowned at this. "I simply couldn't sit here doing nothing at all. Don't you worry, nothing bad happened. He was nice to me and gave me some meat and sweets as a reward. I also asked him for some vegetables and cheese, because I wanted to make dinner for us."

Balok approached her and took her in his arms, beginning to kiss her passionately. His kiss made her melt away and she almost forgot about the dinner until she heard his stomach growling.

"I would rather devour you, my dear. But my stomach won't agree with me and the food you prepared smells delicious and it would be such shame to waste it." Balok said to her. Rose giggled at that. She would not mind if he wanted to devour her because that was exactly what she wanted to do to him. They sat at the table and started to eat. The atmosphere was pleasant, but Balok noticed the worried expression on Rose's face. Was he so deep in his own thoughts not to notice that?

"Rose, are you alright?" his eyes were fixed on her. Rose looked at him.

"I do have to tell you something."

"So have I, Rose."

"You go first."

"No, you go first, because I can see that something is troubling you."

"You also look troubled Balok... but never mind. While I was working in the kitchen, something happened." Balok stared at her half surprised and half worried. "No, no... nothing like THAT happened. The incident was very strange. I was putting dough in the stove when a small flame caught my hand. The innkeeper was scared and tore me away from the stove. He told me, he thought that he had seen the fire burn me, which was true. The flame had indeed touched my hand, but I felt no pain at all. There is no burn, see?" Rose showed him her hand. Balok was confused and a little worried. "I had to convince the innkeeper that he had merely imagined the whole thing. I don't know what happened and you are the only person I know who possesses some magic and also the only person I trust, Balok."

"Maybe I should have told you this sooner... during our travel, when we were sleeping; you always pushed away your blanket in your sleep. I would cover you again only for you to push it away again. It was as if you were so warm that you didn't need the blanket."

Rose stared at him, as if he had two heads. More than once she tried to speak, but no sound came from her lips. Balok was also worried now. For the first time in his life he felt useless; he didn't know what to say or what to do. It was crystal clear that something was happening with Rose and he didn't know what. This fact led him to his decision. He would take her to Vetehinen. Perhaps that sage knew how to help her.

"What is happening to me?! Please... Balok, help me."

"Rose..."

"Did I...did I cause the fire in the brothel?" she was nervous and Balok wished he could say something to calm her down.

"Please, calm down. You see, when I found Vetehinen and talked with him, he said that he wanted to meet you and talk with you. Maybe he knows something. We shall go to him first thing tomorrow."

"You told him about me?! Did you tell him about my...work?" She was worried. What if that man knew about her, about Madame Ruby and the brothel? She didn't want to be exposed and for a moment she believed that Balok had told him everything.

"Certainly, I would never say something like that. That is a matter merely between you and me." His expression was weird and Rose could not figure out what it was. It was obvious that Balok was slightly annoyed and the tone of voice when he said it made clear that he meant it. But the thing which caught her attention was that strange expression on his face. It was almost...as if he would blush, but there was no trace of redness on his black cheeks. Rose tried not to giggle and Balok noticed it. "This is not funny, you know. That man has an excellent sense of smell. He even knew that it was only a few hours since we both had sex ..."

Rose was now laughing while holding her stomach. Yes, this was embarrassing, but also so ridiculous that she could not help herself. Balok stared at her; he was surprised, annoyed and glad at the same time. Yes, he was annoyed because she made him remember what Vetehinen told him, and glad that she seemed less worried and in a better mood than before. The two finished their dinner and went to bed. This time they didn't make love but only cuddled.

++++++++++++++++++++++++

The blonde vampire was stroking himself in the night. His eyes were closed in sadistic passion as he was pleasuring himself while bringing back the memories of his Meadora. He recalled their passion and the way she would make him climax. Why the hell she chose a human rather than him? After all he gave her the gift of immortality. He wanted her for himself and couldn't bear the thought of her being with another man; despite her decision. A decision that made life a living hell for the both of them. They could have lived forever, dominating over other beings. But of all races, Meadora chose a human. Her heart belonged to a simple human being, the lowest of all races! How that happened was still an enigma to the blonde vampire. He screamed as he climaxed, his bloody seed covering the snow beneath his feet.

Recovering from his orgasm, the vampire smiled. Now it was time for the hunt, but he still wanted to know something more about the drow he heard of. He had a vague idea about what kind of task the drow could have; but he wanted to see his level of power. Surely, the race of drows could not be described as weak; even the weakest of them had some kind of great power or skill. The vampire could attack the drow right now, but he wanted to know whom he was dealing with. He would wait, observe and listen. He had to be ready and needed enough information about the drow before he would attack him.

As for the little bitch, all he knew was that her power was growing; but he didn't know her current level of power. He wondered if he would have to kill her to steal her power; or if he could simply take what he longed for, keeping her as his slave. If he let her live, he would certainly make sure to make her life as miserable as possible. He would torture her in every possible way and make her wish she was dead. Unfortunally his former plan didn`t work out too well, because his most loyal servant made a big mistake. Instead of making Rose´s life a living hell, his servant acted like a useless fool and then the damned dark elf destroyed his plan. He had to use some other tactic to gain what his dark soul craved most.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Rose was nervous while they were walking through the town. Although Balok had told her that Vetehinen only wanted to talk to her, she was worried. What if he knew everything about her and wanted to take her back to her native city? By law, everyone who found an escaped slave, or in her case a prostitute, had the right to return this person to its master; even by using force. A gentle squeeze on her shoulder brought her back to reality. His amethyst colored eyes were watching her confused as the dark elf suddenly stopped in midstride which made her realize that she had also stopped. They continued their way side by side.

"I told you, he only wants to talk to you and if there will be some kind of danger, I won't let you get harmed," Balok said, breaking the silence between them. It was a bit strange for him because since they´ve met, they were talking a lot getting to know each other. This was different.

"I know that, but I have the feeling that this is not a good idea. I have the unpleasant feeling that something bad awaits us. That is all, call it women's intuition if you want, but I just know."

"You know, it's good to listen to your intuition, so maybe you are right; and no, I won't laugh at you. I believe you, but this will be merely a simple conversation. Vetehinen will speak with you about something and if he tries to capture or hurt you he better watch his back." This made Rose giggle. When ever she was with Balok she felt safe and she liked that feeling. Surely, she never wanted to use him by any means. She knew that sooner or later she would have to take care of herself without having him by her side to protect her. They continued walking when Balok felt a snowball hitting his back. He quickly turned around only to see Rose smiling at him with a snowball in her hand.

"You said that man should watch his back, but what about your back?" She wanted to think of other things, and to quit worrying. Balok couldn't refuse the challenge and grabbed some snow, made his snowball and threw it at her. He was attacked again with a snowball. For some time they kept throwing snowballs at each other, as they continued their way. Balok liked the playful side of Rose. He wished he knew what was going on with her, but he only had some ideas and wasn't sure about them. Either way, he believed that she was stronger than it seemed. All she needed in her life was freedom; and in his opinion she had at least achieved this freedom halfway. With new knowledge about herself and her possible abilities everything else would fall into place by itself. What ever it was that was going on, he was sure that Vetehinen knew something that could help her.

This time it was easier to reach Vetehinen's house. Lust like Balok on his first visit, Rose was amazed by the ancient beauty and décor of the house.He was glad that Rose was trying to be brave. This girl succeeded to surprise him again and again and that was one thing he liked. Rose wasn't someone who would give up easily, she just wanted to know. And here they were; at the place where they would find the answers to their questions. The door opened and they stepped inside and went upstairs.

"Welcome, please have a seat," said Vetehinen. This time the room was changed into some kind of lounge with a large coffee table and three cream colored armchairs. Balok actually wanted to remain standing, but when Rose accepted the invitation, he decided to sit down too.

"Now, child...," said the man as he looked deep into her eyes. "I suppose you have already heard of meand I know this comes somewhat suddenly, but I wanted to talk to you."

"Yes, Balok told me that you will give him some advices if I accept to come." Balok watched her and noticed that Rose didn't seem to be nervous; just like him when he visited Vetehinen for the first time.In the presence of this man one could feel simply comfortable and totally relaxed.

"It may be a bit confusing, but I assure you that there is a reason why I insisted to see you. Please, tell me what happened yesterday."

Rose gulped and tensed a bit; but remembering Balok´s promise to protect her, and her own promise that she would be brave she told Vetehinen everything she could. He listened to her without interrupting, his face fathomless. The more Rose told him the more relaxed she felt, she even had the feeling that she was safe; there was something reassuring that seemed to emanate from the man with the green hair and beard. She even told him about her life in the brothel and how she and Balok met.

"This is very interesting indeed. Please, can you describe to me how you felt when you were sick?"

"Well, it felt like I was burning; like I was thrown into flames. I couldn't leave my bed and I was always sweating."

"Very well..., now I will ask both of you... have you ever heard about 'the elementals'?"

"The elementals... yes, I heard some things about them," said Balok. He was slightly confused by the whole conversation between Rose and Vetehinen. However, this question sparked his interest to participate in the conversation. "I have heard that they are a very special kind of witches and wizards. Their power is greater than that of a 'simple' witch or wizard. But I do not understand..."

"Your knowledge is correct. Only a few actually know about them; and only a small number of them live among us, and they don't expose their powers very often. Rose... I believe that you are one of them; that you are an elemental."

"What?! I am a witch?" Rose was stunned and so was Balok.

"The elementals are so named, because they possess power over one of the elements. There are four elements: water, air, earth and fire. It seems that you have control over fire. That is why you did not get hurt in the kitchen. The element you control can´t harm you, but you are vulnerable to the other elements."

"But...that would mean...," she lost her voice and her face lost its color. Balok immediately knew what she wanted to say and his hand gripped hers.

"I am afraid so... but child, it was not your fault. You didn't even know that you had that power. Besides, I can assure you that no one except that man died in the incident." He smiled at her worried expression.

"But, how do you know that. You weren't even there. How can you know?"

"I do know, believe me. You should not feel guilty. You have merely destroyed the brothel and killed an evil, sadistic man with no heart; which was not such a bad thing. Actually, it was rather an accident than an act of killing and you know that."

One could see that Rose was troubled; actually even scared because of all the information she had just received. Balok could see that she was deep in thought. She had wanted to know what was going on and now she was trying to absorb and accept what Vetehinen had told her. Even the dark elf was surprised; the information about the elementals was both important and scary. Never before was he scared, but measured on what the sage had said about them, the elementals were very powerful and dangerous since not everybody knew about them.

"So what can I do?" asked Rose after few minutes. "Can I somehow get rid off my power? I am afraid I might kill an innocent. If I had power over one of the other elements I wouldn't mind."

"No child... you can't." His voice was gentle and a bit sad. "You were born like this; neither can you get rid off your power nor can you change it. You don´t have to worry though, all you need is training."

"Are you able train me? Apart from Balok I don't know any other person with magical abilities, let alone one that could train me." Rose was looking for a solution to her dilemma and there was also hunger in her eyes; hunger for knowledge.

"I could train you. Even though, I am not an elemental, I know exactly what is required to do so. The question is, will you be able to trust me and do you accept my offer?"

Rose stared at him, as did Balok. The sage patiently waited for her answer. It seemed like she was inwardly struggling with herself. Balok wanted to say something... to help her somehow, but he didn't want to have an influence on her decision. He knew that he was not skilled enough to help her and he wondered whether she trusted Vetehinen enough to accept his offer.

"I accept," Rose said, "and I will promise you to do my best, sir." When he heard this, he smiled at her sympathetical, for he was satisfied with her decision. Balok and Rose said goodbye to him and left the house with the promise to come back the next day.



The Contrast Ch. 10



"So Rose, do you feel any better now that you know what is going on?" Balok asked her. They were walking in deadly silence. Rose was quiet with a pensive expression on her face which worried him. He would have felt more comfortable if she would not have avoided looking into his eyes on their way back to the tavern.

"I don't know. I should feel relieved, but I am not." She spoke almost in a whisper.

"He said that it was not your fault, that the man which tried to rape you died, so don't blame yourself."

"But what, if I REALLY killed him. What if there is blood on my hands?" Finally she dared to look into his eyes; her emerald eyes searching for something, as if she needed the proof that she was indead innocent.

"I know you didn´t want do it. There is no blood on your hands and you know that." The dark elf wanted to assure her. From the depth of his soul he knew that Rose didn't kill that man. By the Moon´s grace, she was pure, completely pure. He reached out to hold her snow white hands, but Rose jumped like it was the most dangerous thing in the world.

"Rose... what...?" He didn't like this; he didn't like this at all.

"I am sorry, I am just nervous because of everything that happened. That is all. I only need some sleep."

Balok stared at her. Part of him was insulted that she refused to let him hold her hands, but an other part of him wanted to comfort her. He knew that she was very tense and nervous, but who wouldn't be? To discover that you have great magical abilities was a heavy burden. Not only that Rose wasn't aware of that, but she was also very young and so to say a novice in this game. For a moment Balok wondered what she would have done if Vetehinen had not made the offer to train her. He didn't want the answer to that question.

"Allright, just relax and please stop worrying." He received a strange look from her. It was like she was fighting a battle within herself. They continued walking in silence; each of them in their own world. Eventhough they were walking side by side it felt as if there was a huge distance between them. Two strangers in the night just like at the beginning. He knew that there would be a time when Rose would need him, so he let her have it her way. He almost had eternity, he could wait. The right time would come.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

"That cursed filthy drow! If it wasn't for him I would have had that pussy all for myself!" the gang leader yelled with anger. His crew nodded in unison. Never before had they seen him so angry, almost furious because of some girl. Those who were with him to witness the battle between him and the drow knew that their leader wouldn't give up so easily. 

It was not common for a werewolf to just let go of a female, despite of her race, once he has chosen her. He would hunt her down until the very end, but they knew that the drow was very strong. "What are you going to do boss? " one of his gang asked him.

"I will wait for an opportunity to come. I must find his weakness." But the truth was that he knew very little; he didn't know how to challenge the drow.

"If you wait too long, it may be too late for you to have the girl," said a voice out of the shaddow of the dark street where they currently were. The werewolves all turned around and saw the tall silhouette of man leaning against a wall.

"Who the fuck are you? If you are looking for trouble then you just found it!" the leader said. His voice was threatening, almost like a wolf's growl but the stranger didn't even flinch.

"Just someone who could help you getting the girl, but I will demand payment." They stared at him.

"And why would I need your help motherfucker?" asked the leader.

"That´s because you failed to rape her because of the drow," he said calmly. The whole gang instantly shifted into werewolves and lounched to attack him, but the leader stopped them.

"Stop! You said because of the drow. Do you know him?"

"Sorta. Lets just say I have some unfinished business with him," the stranger replied calmly. "So do you accept my offer or not?"

"You said you need payment. What do you want?"

"Blood," was all he said. The stranger came out of the shaddow and the werewolves stared stunned at the vampire. Now they knew why they were so strained in his presence. It was in the nature of vampires and werewolves to hate and fight each other. Like predators fighting for a territory, they wanted the bigger part for themselves. The leader changed into his wolf form and along with his pack attacked the vampire. All of them were lying on the ground in no time; the vampire was too strong for them.

"As I said, I could help you getting the girl and my payment is blood. I have no intention to fight with you cubs" the blond vampire said with a smirk. He looked at the pack leader waiting for an answer.

"What is your name vampire?"

"Balthazar... Balthazar Maestri. So do you accept my offer?"

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Rose was struggling in the bed. Again she dreamed of her being chased by angry people who wanted to burn her like a witch. But in one single moment the dream changed and she saw a beautiful young woman with long black hair and curvy body. She had the smile of someone who knew exactly who she was and what she could do and have if she wanted to. She was dressed in a long black and orange dress and somehow she resembled a gipsy. The woman was walking on a street, as if she was searching for someone. The next moment she turned and stared at Rose. Her gaze was so piercing that Rose felt a chill running down her spine and when she saw the evil smile on the woman's lips Rose screamed.

Balok wrapped his muscular, black arms around her. Rose was screaming and she didn't even recognise him when she finally opened her eyes.

"Shhh... you are safe. It was only a nightmare. I am here and you are safe with me." Balok was rocking her gently back and forth. He wished he could help her, but he was not the master of dreams and had no influence on her dreams. Rose calmed down somehow when she heard his voice.

"Again... again people wanted to kill me, although I did nothing to harm them."

"It was just a dream and now you know why you dreamed it. It is a reflection of your fear of hurting others. You command the fire, but you have yet to learn to do that properly."

"I don't know Balok. It was this woman who..."

"What woman?" the drow blinked at her. Of who had Rose dreamed of? Was she someone from her past life in the brothel?

"I saw a woman in my dream. She had black hair and was very beautiful, but there was something evil in her. Something evil in her eyes when she looked at me. I wanted to escape."

"Tomorrow you will go to Vetehinen, tell him about your dreams. He may help you with that." He was moving his hand up and down her back. There were strange things going on. Things he could neither understand nor predict. He kissed Rose to calm down her even more. The kiss was supposed to comfort her, but the drow suddenly found himself getting aroused. He continued to kiss her face; every part of her face. Rose was enjoying his attention and was kissing him back. For a moment, she tensed when she felt his hand cup her breast.

"Balok..."

"It's ok Rose. I want you to forget about the dream for now. I want you to focus on my touch. Believe me, there is no better cure for nightmares than pleasure." He said as he undressed the both of them. It would be a lie to say that he just wanted a release. No, he wanted to make her feel comfortable and to forget her dream. Yes, he wanted to take her, but it wouldn't be just for his pleasure, but for the pleasure of both of them.

He let his lips travel from her neck to her breasts, her stomach and finally down to the core of her womanhood. She held her breath as he kissed her there and more. Balok was exploring her with his mouth while he held her hips with his strong hands.

"Balok...ah...you are unbelievable. You don't... know what you are...doing!" Rose moaned. Oh, he knew what he was doing and wanted to make her speechless with his actions. He liked her taste like the rest of her. Balok liked Rose, her beauty, her courage which somehow was buried by her uncertainty, her worry provoked by the information of her powers. He liked everything. It felt completely natural to be here with her, feeling her hips moving against his mouth. When she came he got up and entered her. Their sex was gentle this time, they took their time. In her passion she scratched his back with her nails. Suddenly he got up and Rose stared at him.

"Don't worry; I just want to get something," he assured her. Rose was still confused. Why did he leave her and got out of the bed? Her eyes were searching for an answer and then she saw the flask of oil. She didn't need any further explanation. She knew what that was for, some of the prostitutes frequently used oil to avoid pain.

"Do you want to do that?" she asked him. There was a brief silence before he answered.

"It's my fantasy, but we won't do it if you feel uncomfortable with it. It's not my wish to bring you pain."

Rose thought about it. Balok really never hurt her and always cared for her pleasure beside his own. She also knew about anal pleasure and that some women enjoyed it. But back in the brothel she could easily recall the screams of pure pain because some of the customers liked to take a prostitute unprepared, enjoying her suffering. Rose thought about it for a moment and decided to give it a try. She smiled at him and rolled on the stomach.

Balok soaked his fingers in oil and brought them to her ass. He gently massaged her to make her relax and then massaged her opening. He never hurried and let her body adjust to his fingers. He must have done it right because Rose let out a pleasurable moan. He smiled as he felt her body extending enough to let him in and he positioned himself above her.

"Relax, we will go slowly. Tell me if you feel pain." Rose nodded and he entered her. The feeling was strange, not like their usual sex, but it wasn't unpleasant. There was no pain. He began to move gently and slowly increased the speed of his movements; always paying attention to her. Together they came to the point when they could not control themselves any longer and Balok let out an animalistic scream and climaxed inside her, which took her over the edge aswell. Spent and tired, they fell asleep.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

"Now pay attention on this child," it was the first instruction that Vetehinen was giving her and Rose was very careful to remember everything he was going to teach her. "There are four types of elementals: fire, water, earth and air. Each of them has special abillities connected to his or her element. Since you are a fire elemental, we will start with the basic control of your element."

He put some logs in the fireplace, but didn't light the fire. The sage told her to stay in front of the fireplace. Rose looked at him and then at the logs.

"Raise your hand and spread the fingers. Yes, just like that. Now I want you to focus your attention and thoughts only at the logs and to let your energy flow."

Rose swallowed... to tell the truth she was very nervous. What if something went wrong? But she had to do that. She forced herself to calm down, doing what he asked of her. Her palm started to glow and a small ball of fire appeared. She threw it at the logs and the ball hit the target, but it didn't cause a fire, only a few sparks emerged.

"It´s alright child, I didn't expect this to be perfect at the beginning. Do it again."

This time the fireball was stronger and a small fire was burning in the fireplace. Rose was pleased with her work. It was still scary that she was capable of doing it, but now she wanted to learn and get to know her powers. They practised with fireballs, throwing fire and to control the power. That was the hardest part of the training and by the end of the day she was exhausted. When she was finished Balok, who was waiting for her and occasionally watched her training, took her back to the inn.

"So, how do you feel? Any better?" he asked. The reason why he waited for her was not only because he wanted to watch her training, but because he wanted to escort her safely back to the inn. 

It was notlike she couldn't defend herself. She could by now if she used her power. But Vetehinen insisted that Balok had to protect her now, to make sure she didn't have to use her power; at least not until she knew the basic rules. Like Vetehinen said, she was like a baby dragon... powerful, but without the knowledge to control herself. In other words, she could be very dangerous and the result of using her power right now would be fatal. The drow chuckled to himself, just like playing with fire.

"I learned to throw fireballs. It was intimidating at first, but later I got used to it." She indeed sounded content and there was also a sparkle of happiness in her eyes and Balok was pleased. "Vetehinen explained that I must focus on the object and clear my mind when I lounch a fireball. It's not hard, but I have problems to control the power."

"Well, we can stay here as long as it takes you to master your power. I have plenty of time."

"But what about your people? You have to inform them about what Vetehinen told you."

"I already told them. I talked with one of my people through the crystal ball and that person will tell the others. They needed the information, not me really."

"Who did you talk with?" Rose asked.

"Well,...uh...I talked with a very trustful person. I don't know the proper word in the human language to describe it to you." This was the first time that Balok lied to her.

Rose studied his face, his expression, seeking for something. He felt really bad that he lied to her, but he didn't want to scare her. Especially didn't he want Rose to know about HER. Eilistraee herself knows that it would be too risky for them to meet each other.

Rose gave up and let it pass for now. It was not like they were married, he didn't have any obligation or duty concerning her person. The very thought brought a small wave of sadness to her heart, but Rose decided to ignore it. It was no use to even think about it. They were strangers and lovers, nothing more. There would be the moment when they would seperate from each other and she would be broken hearted if she let her emotions lead her.

"Are you too tired for a little walk through the city?" Balok asked her. She didn't even notice that they stood there in silence. Yes, she was tired but she also wanted to see the city and she wanted to go to bed without feeling completely sad.

"I would love to. Let's go."

"Allright then."

Their walk was slow and comfortable. The city was as beautiful in the moonlight as it was during daylight. He showed her a place where the habitants were having a cockfight and it seemed that a red one was going to be the winner. But his opponent was not going to give up. Somehow that black roster mesmerized her, as if he wanted to send her a message not to give up despite everything. 

They betted on the black rooster and in the end he won. People congratulated them and gave them the price, a small necklace with an emerald pendant. Balok gave it to Rose and she tried to protest but he said that although they betted together, it was her idea to participate in the first place. In the end she accepted and thanked him. The necklace fitted her very well and she like it. They turned to leave when someone from the group behind them shouted at them.

"Do you know that the emerald is a gem of steady love?"

Both of them seemed to be confused and looked at each other only to move faster toward the inn. Rose´s face glowed as if she had a fever and Balok´s expression was hard to describe. They didn't say a word until they were in their room. Balok let out a heavy breath.

"I am sorry,"she said.

"Sorry? Sorry for what?"

"I was my fault that you feel uncomfortable."

"You did nothing wrong. It was that person who shouted after us. But the necklace fits you excellent."

"Thank you. I really never had any kind of jewellery. I will treasure this one."

"As for what that person said about the gem, it's just a story. Believe me, where I live there are a lot of gems and drows use them for magic, healing and trade. Gems can be used for many things, but they can't change, control or affect emotions."

Rose nodded, the gem was beautiful, but somehow she couldn't get those words out of her head. Steady love... something that she would never experience. No one would love her. No one would care for her. Balok was her lover and she liked him, but he didn't have any deeper feelings for her than maybe friendship. Yes, the term fitted. One weird friendship based on sex and trust.