Hilda and Kana: The Grave Doll of Isha - Part 2

Part 2

He sat and drank alone, at the wall side end of a long table. He had a short pug face and darting black eyes that spoke to a bad personality. He carried a short knife but it was no tool. No, it was a stabbing weapon. Most importantly the scars were there, just as the street rat described. Something sharp and hard had gone in one cheek and out the other.

I caught Kana's attention and motioned discreetly towards our target. She nodded and we moved to block him in. As one we sat down, me on the right, Kana on the left.

"Luli the Badger I presume," I growled.

"What's it too you?" he said in a weaselling voice.

"Let's take a walk," said Kana and from the tone of her voice and the look on Luli's face I knew she had a sharp object pressed into something soft and fleshy.

He gulped.

I smiled, reached down, gave his cock a squeeze and stole his knife.

Kana led Luli towards the stairs to the second story while I spoke to Astegal about acquiring a room for an hour or two. He agreed readily enough and I handed over the needed coin. As the three of us disappeared some of the other patrons even gave a half-hearted cheer at our obvious 'good fortune'.

As soon as we were behind a closed door I propped my sword against the wall and punched Luli right in the face. Setting the correct tone is very important.

He let out a panicked yell and stumbled backwards. A kick to his knee sent him crashing to the ground and a boot to the ribs stopped any nasty rebellious ideas before they formed.

"Luli, Luli, Luli," I said as I circled his snivelling form. "How would you like to give us some information?"

"Just tell me what you want?" he cried in that oh so sweet tone that told me I'd be getting exactly that. Snitches and whores - both got fucked over but only the latter got paid for it.

"You delivered a ransom note, Luli," I said as I knelt down by his head. "We want to know who you're working for."

"I don't know!" he wailed and that is what we call a wrong answer.

"Wrong answer." I stood and drove my boot into his guts. "Try again."

He dry heaved for several seconds but finally answered. "I really don't know! They gave me money and the note, nothing more."

"I don't think you quite understand my position," I said and drew my foot back for another kick. "I want results, not excuses. How you get them is your business."

"We're meeting tonight!" he shrieked. "He's giving me the other half of my pay. Please, that's all I know, I promise."

"See," I said and ruffled his hair. "Was that so hard?"

From the sounds he made it really might have been.

As quick as that we were one step closer to rescuing Dido. We'd attend Luli's meeting, capture his contact and get the information we needed out of him. The meeting was still some hours away so we settled into our room for a wait. Of course Luli had to stay with us. A man like him? Not someone you trusted out of your sight.

Come dark, I kicked Luli into action and had him lead us to his contact. The meeting was set to take place in a far more disreputable popina across the city. A dilapidated sign hung on the wall, showing a crude stick figure. We went inside.

Even I, who have no tolerance at all for pointless city-shit, could see it was a real dive of a place. Vomit, piss and sex-stink lay thick on the dirty floor and people nursed dark musty drinks. Knives, cudgels and larger weapons stood ready to hand. At the back, a group of five men gang banged a screaming serving wench. They had her stretched over a round table, one pounding her cunt and another pumping in and out of her mouth. The rest held her down and waited their turn. She struggled and fought but no one paid much notice. At least they had a small collection of coin going for her in an empty wine jug.

"Don't even think of trying anything," I hissed to Luli as Kana and I swept passed and towards a dark corner of the room. Letting Luli out of kicking range was a risk but his contact was unlikely to approach with dangerous strangers so near.

We waited in tense silence, the noises of sex, the occasional fights and heavy argument creating a pleasant enough backdrop.

A whore sidled up to me - a slightly too old Dar-Edamim who's makeup did a poor job of concealing that fact. Rather than shove her away and give her a good kicking for her trouble, I decided to put her useless sack of a body to good use as ready cover. I pulled her down onto my lap so her body mostly covered mine and began mauling her breasts. They were thick and meaty, and there's a lot of fun things you can do with a needy whore.

"Eyes," I said and she reluctantly met mine. They were dark, of course, and slightly glazed - probably the result of a few drinks to make her work easier. "Don't cry out." I reached into a pocket and withdrew a split jade strip. It glimmered darkly in the poor light and I placed it between her pouty lips, pushing it just far enough that it wouldn't fall out under its own weight. Then I took her long fat nipples in my hands and twisted.

The shock showed in her eyes and I drunk it in. Her lips sealed around the strip, swallowing her cries; it was her payment after all. Then she started to grind her useless cunt onto my knee and a wet stain ate into my trousers.

I gave a half-laugh. Fuck, either she was a real pain slut or she was high on one of those foreign drugs which raped the mind until pain and pleasure became one weird mixed up thing. Let me tell you, violent brutal sex when you've snorted a good dose of one of those is fan-fucking-tastic. 'Course, they're rare and expensive most places, but they had to come from somewhere and Agartha's plenty foreign by my standards.

"You utter whore," I hissed and twisted harder.

A fierce blush stained her face and her cunt juiced all the harder. The jade strip wagged up and down.

Further fun was interrupted when a new customer entered the tavern. He was darker of skin than most Dar-Edamim and looked less at home in his clothes. A visitor from one of the other Neck of Salt cities perhaps? If locals were disinclined to hurt Dar-Yalad, mightn't our kidnappers be foreign?

He meandered towards Luli, taking his time and appearing uninterested. Finally, though, he settled next to Luli and the two bent their heads together like embarrassed fuck-mates. They whispered in low voices. The stranger looked up in shock, right at us. Luli turned too, pointing, and the stranger took the opportunity to drive a knife between his ribs.

"Luli you damn fool," I growled and surged to my feet, the whore falling to one side, my great sword rising. Kana erupted up beside me.

The stranger vaulted over Luli's bleeding corpse and made for the door. I charged forward, moving to block. Kana set her back against the wall, reached up with one leg and kicked. The table screeched out, digging furrows in the heavily soiled floor. It skidded right into the door and blocked his path, but he vaulted over. With a rolling shoulder-bash, he broke the door down and dived outside. I cursed and followed.

The streets beyond the door were dark and the heat of the day had given way to a horrible chill. I cast about and just caught him disappearing down a side alley.

"This way!" I screamed and gave chase.

He was only just ahead and not pulling away. In fact, yes, he stopped at an intersection, looking left and right, and I dived for him. My clutching fingers just caught his legs and I dragged him down even as he tried to run.

We slammed into the hard packed ground and the impact made stars dance in my eyes. That was enough time for him to draw a knife from somewhere and slash at my arms. I jerked back and he started clambering to his feet. Fuck if that was going to happen. When I have someone down, they're either getting beaten or fucked (or possibly both if I'm in a particularly good mood).

I scrabbled forward and he slashed again. This time I took the blow on my forearm - the metal plate which served me as a vambrace sparking. Metal screeched and he lost his grip on the knife. It span away and I drove a fist full force into his nose. Bones crunched, blood gushed and the back of his head slammed into the ground anew. In the moment this bought me, I kicked myself upright and straddled his chest, ready to strike again.

"Let's have a talk, you and me," I said with a cruel smile. "Where is Dido being kept?"

"I'll never talk," he shot back. "I'd rather die."

Kana arrived a moment later and placed a large boot on his chest. This gave me the chance to rise, retrieve my great sword and rest the tip between his pectoral muscles. I pushed down, driving its honed point through cloth, skin and flesh - though not too deep.

"Let's try this again, where is she?"

As it turned out he wouldn't rather die, though we gave that gift to him anyway. Weren't we generous?

Dido was being held in an old farm house not too far out of town. I've known villages which close their gates come sundown but luckily Agartha wasn't among them. That was for the good; the kidnappers would surely have noticed the disappearance of their messenger by then.

We left by the western Sea Gate. The road was quieter than during the day but a few weary souls trudged in both directions - poor sorts without even the good courtesy of carrying something worth robbing. We didn't even attempt to play locals and set a fast pace.

Our target was a small, old farm house set well back from the road and shielded by a slight hill and a copse of low bushy trees. The leaves were hard and leathery, a long way from the vibrant green of the wetter south. They also had sharp, serrated edges and I earned myself a stinging cut on one cheek. The wound stung as if someone had pissed on it.

We hid in the woods and crawled forward on our bellies until we could get a good view. The house was made from mud brick. Not the sort of thing I'd ever want to live in but I'm no farmer. I've fucked a few squealing daughters and sons of the same, though, and they seemed happy enough in houses like this.

"How many guards?" I said in a low voice. I looked at the windows. Weak light showed from inside, probably a hearth fire, and I could just make out a few moving shapes.

"Small house," said Kana, "can't be more than a dozen. They've been there for a few days at least."

"Harder to hide too. Call it half that."

"With one dead?"

"Sure, let's test our luck."

The dark shadows of night shielded us as we slowly crept forward. We reached the door and I placed an ear against it. Footsteps, muffled voices, a little light moaning. Nothing to really help.

I held up five fingers and started to count down. On zero, I kicked the door down. The old wood burst apart. Kana rushed inside, shield raised to cover her body and sabre ready to attack. I followed a moment later.

The house was small, smaller even than it looked from outside. Much of the space was taken up with a large central fire and ancient gnarled support beams.

Two hulking figures looked up from a wine stained table, a cup and dice forgotten between them. Kana ran for them. At the other end of the house was a very naked Dido, tied flat to a bed. Straddling her waist sat a woman. She had short cropped black hair and dusky skin, though I could only see her back. As she turned she pulled up a veil which hung around her neck.

She came at me, two knives flashing red from the fire. I blocked with my great sword and stepped into the attack, driving the pommel towards her head. She ducked back, retreating two quick steps. I followed, turning my pommel smash into a powerful raising strike. No way was a knife stopping that kind of blow and she knew it. She retreated again. The massed momentum of my swinging sword pulled it out of guard. She saw the flaw and struck. I took the blow on my right-hand vambrace and sparks flew. It was a faint, though, and she danced around my side.

The slut was light on her feet, I'll give her that, and as nimble as the acrobat-whores of Lower Zee. I swung as I turned, relying on fast, heavy steel to keep her back. It worked. She jinked again but struck just as quickly. Her right knife flickered in attack and I blocked with my sword. Then she struck with her left, aiming for the edge of my vambrace plate.

Shit.

I threw her back by main force but not before she cut the leather strap holding the plate in place and left a bleeding gash on my arm. The plate hung out of place and flapped as I returned my sword to guard.

No more games. I fell into a furious attack, not letting up for a moment. The crowded hut wasn't the best place for great sword combat but a long cock fucks better even in tight corners. Strike, slash, swipe. I drove her back, step by step, never letting her recover to mount an attack.

The central fire pit appeared behind her. I grinned like a wolf. She was trapped, or should have been. She paused for a single heartbeat, then back flipped over the fire, body curving in a perfect arch as the flames licked at her. A half second later she landed like a cat, not even slightly singed.

She looked at me from the far side of the fire, eyes shining like ruby chips. She had tattoos around her eyes, inked twisting vines.

Behind her fought Kana. One of the brutes was down, stomach gushing entrails from a deep slash. The second was still standing. He held a crude but solid wooden chair before him and used its body as a makeshift shield. Kana slashed out but he blocked and her light weapon lacked the weight to power through that much wood. No help from there then.

I took advantage of the momentary lull to rip off the piece of dangling armour and threw it away. It wasn't doing much good and the weight was throwing me off.

In that moment of half-distraction, she struck. Viper fast, she threw her right-hand knife. It shot arrow straight for the hole in my armour. A hit there could disable my arm and I needed both to work a great sword. In desperation I swung my sword in a block and knocked the knife out of the air. It shattered on impact, shards of metal scything everywhere. I stumbled back, eyes closing instinctively.

If she'd struck then, she might have won, but of course she'd have had to jump through the fire again. Instead she was half way to the door by the time I opened my eyes. The fingers on her right hand danced. The shadows in the house grew thicker, darker, denser. They ran with her as she broke for the door and swallowed her entirely as she made it outside.

I'd have given chase but Kana needed help. I circled the fire and charged in, letting loose a battle cry to let Kana know I was on my way. Hearing me, she retreated and I took her place. The bruiser raised his chair again but it didn't do much good. A light sabre might fail against a chair. The same could not be said for a great sword wielded by a pissed off warrior woman.

My sword crunched right through the chair without slowing and broke open his skull. Brains oozed and bubbled.

His body slumped to the floor. My ears pulsed with hot blood. Quiet hung in the house. I let out a breath.

"Please!" moaned Dido from her position on the bed.

"We're coming," said Kana.

"Rescue is on the way," I muttered.

Kana stayed to guard the door and I went to rescue the bondage fuck-puppet. She squirmed on the bed, her lithe, pale body running with sweat and grime. Despite that she was absolutely ravishing.

Strain showed in every muscle of her body, quivering like a pathetic thing. Large leather bands held her arms to the headboard and feet to the bottom of the bed. Further ropes circled her thin thighs, keeping them apart. At their apex hung her cunt, fat, engorged and leaking like the eyes of a whore who just found out her handsome prince had no intention of marrying her and all the sick-shit she'd done was for naught. A thin rope lassoed her clit and pulled the tiny nub out and taught. Similar nooses knotted her nipples and the tiny nubs glowed red with pulsing blood.

"Please," she moaned. "Please I need to cum. She's been teasing me for days."

Sluts. What you going to do?

Rolling my eyes slightly, I licked two fingers and gave her the finger fucking she so obviously needed. She exploded in seconds.

---

"After that," said Hilda, "we bundled Dido up and took her home. Jabnit and Jezebel were stupidly happy. The other Dar-Yalad were all tears and sobbing too. City shit. Just doesn't make sense. We stayed the night, ate an admittedly good breakfast and left before midday a whole lot richer.

"And that's the story of how we met Isha. Of course, we didn't learn that had been her until later. The eye tattoos should have clued us in, but, well, I didn't think much of them at the time."

"That's also the first time we saw Shadow Cant," said Kana. "Isha always had a talent for it."

Hilda waved a hand and drank the last few dregs from the bottle. "I'd seen a few pieces here and there before. But, yes, she was always good at it. Could make the shadows stand up and dance for her."

The long shadows cast by the bonfire twisted and flickered. Strange, half seen shapes moved among the trees. The wind moaned.

"You hear that, ghostsies," said Hilda, "a girl after your own heart."

She laughed, a morose sound with a black core, and the wind laughed with her.

"Anyway, a new story means a new drink." She reached into her pack and withdrew a second glass bottle. "Not as good as the first, I'm afraid, but we do what we must." She cracked the wax seal and took a gulp. "Piss but potent piss." She threw some on the fire and blue light made the shadows even stranger than before. "And some for Isha too." She poured a splash onto the grave doll and passed the bottle over to Kana. "What next?"

"The treasure of the Bandit Queen?" said Kana. "Agartha was the first time we met Isha, but it wasn't until the Bandit Queen that we grew to know her."

"The treasure of the Bandit Queen it is," said Hilda. "And it's your turn to tell a story I believe."

The End

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