Ecdysis

Chapter 98. “The Welcoming Committee” (Part2)

Our conversation didn’t last much longer afterwards — if one could even apply length to what was essentially less than a blink of an eye for everybody else — and I once again had found myself in a saddle. The ride to the camp was both uneventful and awkward since, after a quick deliberation, I decided to refuse the horse offered to me by Lita’af. Both to subtly remind her that I wasn’t letting Kamshad off the hook and to avoid riding on a fresh, eager warhorse. Not after I learned about the battle between Irje and Muramat. Meanwhile, my stomach, full of wine and food, didn’t improve my equestrian skills either.

Judging by the sway of her tail and the tilt of her ears, Lita’af wasn’t particularly fond of my decision but she didn’t press me further. Not with Albin Chasya breathing down her neck with his sheer presence, all while whistling a catchy tune. Instead, she offered me one of her cloaks and pushed the procession toward the camp.

I spent the ride mostly by myself after that. Neither I nor Albin were particularly eager to restart our conversation in public — he said what he wanted to say and I was busy digesting the news. On the other hand, Lita’af was busy maintaining proper appearances in front of so many Dominas and the rest wisely chose not to comment or intrude into our matters.

By now, I was more than certain that I was going to accept Albin’s demands. Now that Irje dispelled my previous fears and showed a surprising aptitude for my gear, it was no longer a question if I was going to experiment further but when. Not even ‘when?’ but ‘how soon?’ and ‘why not yesterday?’, at that. But that was exactly why Albin rushed all the way out here just to wine and dine me.

It wasn’t just his warnings that steered my thoughts right now. Any other would’ve simply preened at the Manor attestation, but I heard the subtle reminder that our continuous growth had wide-reaching consequences. A single glance at Lita’af told me that I wasn’t the only one who saw Dominas in my wives anymore. Not Aikerim-level Pillar Dominas — not yet, at least — but more than the average Ladies from the periphery with but a handful of villages around their Manor. With my relentless quest to make sure that me and mine were safe from any threats thrown at us, I missed the point when we stopped being ‘the sadaq with the Sparkless daimon’ and became ‘the Manor with three Dominas’ instead.

Three Dominas, a Navigator, an estate of half-trained servants and a couple of master artisans… What a Manor that was!

An incomplete one.

We entered the camp but quickly turned away from the towering arusak in the middle of the camp. “We are not meeting the General?”

My sudden quip earned me a few looks and scowls but Lita’af was quick to reply. “As the Censor of Emanai, Sophia Shebet Chasya was summoned to witness the Goddess. In her absence, the Manipulars of both arms had agreed to prorogue her brother and a well-renowned General in his own might, Albin Chasya, as the interim General. Despite him graciously coming to meet the Bayan Gol delegation… and his personal acquaintance, the proper reception can only happen in his quarters.”

I nodded in acceptance and glanced around. Yes, Dominas expected to be dined and wined as well, while their servants needed time to set up tents and other accommodations, but none of that concerned me in any way, shape, or form. I was likely a half-dead man walking for my sudden disappearance already. If my wives found out I was entertaining guests with Albin while they still had no idea whether I was dead or alive, I wouldn’t see the next sunrise for sure. “Albin? I believe I am needed elsewhere.”

He glanced back at me but there was no surprise on his face. “Running away from a chatrang match, are you? I will take it as my win.”

I scoffed. “You cheat anyway. Delara Kamshad? I thank you for your horse, will you take the reins?”

The guard captain froze in place, glancing between me and her Domina, Shireen Inayat, for help but Lita’af was quicker once again.

The white tail imperiously swished. “I will vouch for him. Your horse will be returned by tomorrow morning.”

Shireen gave me a nod after a long, scrutinising glance. “The Lady of Kamshad House is beyond generous. You seem to be held in high regard by many but make sure not to get drunk on that influence and test her good-will too far; every Kamshad Domina will defend the honour of our silver wolf. Delara, let him go.”

Slight posturing and face-saving, but I wasn’t expecting anything less by now. Giving her a curt smile, I nudged the horse to exit the group. “Your silver wolf is both shrewd and perceptive to know that my expediency is for her sake, as well as mine.”

After building our camps daily for many weeks of marching, I knew the layout as the back of my hand. A few turns to get me to the tents of the first maniple, a startled servant staring at the reins of my horse that I slapped into his hand, a familiar curtain that I pushed aside and I found myself in the suffocatingly-strong embrace of four arms.

After the initial scuffle of shouts and a trove of messengers sent everywhere — from informing Hajar of my arrival, apparent injury, and expected absence until tomorrow, to fetching clothes and food — I was finally allowed to be released from their hands and to sit down.

“Who was it?” Anaise gave her pillow a glance and sat beside me instead, wrapping her tail around my waist.

I gave her ear a gentle stroke and leaned back on my cougar already sitting on the other side. “The enemy General himself, Bragge Archomilea the Third. Rest assured — my actions ensured that he paid dearly for it. The rest is Albin’s responsibility as he was the real target of Bragge’s plot.”

Albin was rather vague on Bragge’s fate, as it was probably still being decided up in the sky, but I made sure to leave a neat gaping hole in his memory when it came to my sadaq as my parting gift. Even without Albin’s promise, I knew I had some time before he learned of us again — especially if we wouldn’t cross paths again. Or maybe that was exactly why Albin made that promise in the first place.

Irje cracked her fingers. “Next time anyone dares something like this again, I will grind them into dust!”

“Irje,” Anaise murmured while inspecting her fingernails, “turning our enemies into dust is the speciality of my magic.”

“Then I will punch them eight times with every swing!” my cougar thundered, undaunted.

I couldn’t help but admire the blueish ephemeral arms floating behind her back. Each one of them graceful and full of power, magical copies of Irje’s corporeal arms. Forget Dominas — I had the undefeatable Mother Goddess by my side!

But I was also curious. “Irje, why are you still holding the trimmer?”

“Erm,” she yanked her hand behind her back and glanced at Anaise, “I was about to mention that…”

“Right,” Anaise sighed and turned toward the silent pair quietly sipping their wine. “Kirana, Huare, would you offer us some privacy?”

“They could stay this time,” I leaned forward, catching everyone’s attention, “As long as they swear an oath of fealty, that is.”

The two pairs of antlers swivelled toward me as the Kausar twins gawked at me in astonishment.

“Fealty?” Huare asked. “You wish that we would join Aikerim’s Manor? I was expecting you to ask for a concubinage.”

“Huare.” Kirana hissed.

That last part was mumbled quietly but not quiet enough for me or for her sister to overhear.

I shook my head. “No, not to Aikerim Adal.”

“Erf,” it was Anaise’s turn to hiss as her fingers pinched my ear, “what are you doing!?”

I reached out and squeezed her hand. “I want both of you to swear fealty to Anaise Kiymetl Hilal. I want you to swear fealty to Irje Kiymetl, to Yeva, and to me. And I want you to do it now, while the Divines are directly above us to hear your Oath.”

“You are forming a Manor all by yourself,” Kirana summarised, staring at me.

I shook my head again. “You saw my wives in battle, Kirana Kausar, I know you have been watching us. Do you truly believe that they would return to Samat with their feats and accomplishments and simply stay as untitled wermages? Look at me — I have broken down one of the enemy fronts, forced a chunk of their forces to withdraw from the battle — all but assuring an enemy rout on our flank — and then I sabotaged the plot against the Speaker of Shebet by refusing to be a willing bait for the enemy. Albin Shebet Chasya is aware and so will be his sister.

“During my abduction, I was stripped of my armour, lost Chirp, and had one of my lashes ripped apart before I was dumped alone and nearly naked into the Forest,” I felt Anaises’s tail grip me tighter. “To survive, I had to best two Creatures that came after me, with one of them dragging me across mountains, hills, and valleys using its teleporting magic, until I finished it for good above the roofs of Bayan Gol. All because there was an enemy spy among the Kamshad. I came back here on the swift galleys of the Bayan Gol delegation, rushing to meet our Goddess. They will certainly inform Lita’af Hikmat about the manner of my appearance in their city. How do you think the Kamshad will respond to the current conundrum? Roshanak Gulnaz can deny all accusations and simply weather the storm from her untouchable position as the Kamshad Matriarch, but I have a feeling that she would prefer to keep this away from the public eye — and avoid having one of her sons humiliated for being a love-struck fool that he was — by making us whole, placated, and silent. That means favours and riches. Influence.”

“You killed a Creature that can jump!?”

“What can I say? Sometimes, being a murk can have its benefits, especially if one has proper tools at their disposal. But back to the main topic — what does a Manor need to exist? I just showed you we have plenty of power and influence. Wealth and land? I don’t think I need to insult you by explaining why it is not an issue for us either, with Aikerim Adal as our patron.”

Huare smiled. “A Manor needs people.”

I nodded. “And our estate is bustling with hundreds of workers. There is no need to form a Manor because it already exists.”

Anaise furrowed her brows. “My mother might not receive the news of this well.”

“Your mother knew this for a long time, love, if not in her mind then inside her heart,” I murmured straight into her ear. “She wouldn’t have allowed you to join our sadaq otherwise. She would’ve tried to either dismantle it like Sophia Chasya or blundered through it like Roshanak Gulnaz. Instead, by ‘giving you away’, she made it yours.

“Isra Haleh, Shahin Esca, even the wer potter Keivan and the slave wer bodyguard Viter — Aikerim had been doing what I am doing right now from the very beginning. An isolated estate, deep within her Manor, only beholden to us and through us to her? How is that anything else but a creche for a nascent Manor? A school for a naive Navigator, so that he doesn’t fail her daughter when his time comes.”

The ear rapidly gained colour. “Naive Navigator, my tail.”

I chuckled and nibbled the tip of her ear. “She had to be certain that I had the necessary skills to care for her precious daughter.”

Anaise squeaked and pushed my face away.

Allowing her to squirm in peace, I turned back to the twins. “Despite my recent achievements, I am not gathering a band or warriors for a campaign. I am not offering you battles to wage, enemies to defeat, or spoils to plunder. I want not your war spells but your earth magic so that I do not wonder if the House of Samat is sending yet another Collector among their builders to ‘assist’ me in building the next project. I seek legitimacy for our Manor that Pillar wermages in our retinue would bring forth. I seek people to walk the Daimon path with us that I can trust. The path of creation and growth.

“The question is — will you come along?”

Before her sister could say anything else, Huare got up from her seat. She untied her kattar from her sash and presented it to me, still in its sheath, as she went down on her knee in front of me.

She sang her oath — a fluid, melodious speech, unlike that of Isra Haleh before Aikerim Adal. But then again — Isra was far more interested in smithing than talking, while Huare was likely set to become someone’s retainer long before we came into the picture. It was a common career choice for young wermages with good heritage yet without personal Manors. Yes, the Enoch Matriarch knew whom she was sending alongside us, but she didn’t do it in an imperious, Kamshad way. And an Oath under the Sky Castle was a Big Deal for any Emanai wermage. Zamindar Azrin would get her connection to our Manor, but she wouldn’t get a spy among our ranks. I felt my eyebrows rise as Huare continued, however — the oath went far beyond the basic fealties and fiduciary obligations. She wasn’t relinquishing her rights to me outright, as was the case with concubinage or Servitude, but quite a number of doors were left wide open for me to take and plenty of keys were placed into my palm.

“That was… more than I had asked for,” I eloquently stuttered once she was done.

Huare gave me a coy smile. “We expected less and you offered us more. You expected less and I gave you more. Just like our previous agreement, when you proved yourself by presenting us with the balloon,” she licked her lips, “and now I want to see what I would get for being the first to stand under your Manor’s banners. Besides, my antlers know what they want.”

“That is why you added the whole spiel about needing my permission to marry and more?”

The antlers swayed side to side. “Even Anaise Kiymetl Hilal receives husband offers she can’t easily reject. What do you think would happen if someone tried to get at you or close to you by making an offer my mother couldn’t refuse? Just as you said, the Manor I am swearing my allegiance to is not a simple one at all. Common Dominas can’t match the latent power of the three co-Dominas — with one of them being the granddaughter of the Pillar Matriarch — enhanced and united by a Daimon on their side. Meanwhile, Pillar Matriarchs have tremendous gravitas but they also have vast retinues of established Dominas and unlanded wermages already. As such, any newcomers are but raindrops in a pond for them. My allegiance to you, however, will be noticeable to all and my status will be desirable by many. My Oaths will protect me just as much as they will benefit you. That is what they are for.”

A quick glance at my wives told me that Huare indeed chose her words wisely, offering as much as she could to signal her level of commitment but not enough to concern my wives with her eagerness. Good. I had no need for idiots and sycophants, at least for now. Taking the proffered kattar, I ceremoniously inserted it into my sash. “And may the Gods Above witness that I welcome you, Huare Enoch Kausar, into our Manor…”

In comparison, my response was standard and formulaic. A near verbatim quote from one of the books Aikerim forced me to study some time ago. Just as Huare was showing commitment with her expanded oath, I was signalling my awareness of the ritual and its significance to make it clear that I wasn’t playing make-believe either.

Huare’s antlers swivelled toward her sister as soon as I finished speaking. “Kirana?”

Kirana twitched, “You and your loose tongue… What am I supposed to do now!?”

Huare tilted her head. “I think you should say your Oath.”

“I know that!” She made sure to avoid my gaze. “As if I would leave you behind.”

“You still have to say it. In full.”

Kirana gave her sister another glare, glanced at me, pinked slightly, and began to untie her kattar sheath. It took her a few moments to gather herself but, once she started speaking, Kirana quickly found her pace and I found myself with two additional kattars on my sash. As a last resort and a self-defence weapon, kattars symbolised them giving away their ‘power’ to me just as much as my obligation to defend the kattar-givers in their stead. Eventually, my sashes would have an embroidery pattern to signify this event, but right now I had to carry the real ones.

My palm patted the kattar handles with engraved Enoch sigils. “It is done.”

The two pairs of antlers dipped in a small bow. “It is done. Your Fate is our Fate.”

“Dominas?” Irje murmured with her fingers on her lips, as if trying to feel the word she was speaking.

“Our husband, as always, does not know what half-measures are.” Anaise sighed as she flicked an invisible speck off my shoulder, still holding me like a vice with her tail. “Neither does he understand the passage of time — I too believe that your breakthrough will make you a Domina one day. In thirty or fifty years, that is, once you earned enough renown and had a daughter or two. Instead, Erf turned it into mere days.”

I shrugged. “I am consolidating my gains like a proper daimon would. I am certain that any wermage, if they were thrust into my position, would do the same. Besides, I am not going to approach Lita’af and her mother without making sure I am doing so from the most advantageous position and without wasting my leverage on petty and inefficient insults in order to ‘save our face’ and not appear weak from the apparent lack of immediate responses.” Pushing my cape aside, I waved my stump. “I already drew so much attention from the enemy General that he revealed his play on me — let us not draw even more for now. I spoke with Albin and he urged me not to.”

Anaise glanced upwards and gave me a barely perceptible nod. “Yes, right now is not the time for your usual shenanigans. What Daimonas are known for, however, is building Manors around themselves first and foremost, not around their spouses. Do not bother to tell me that you did it to avoid my mother’s wrath at your growing independence — I know that it was the last thing on your mind. You simply do not see the Manor as anything less than four of us, aren’t you? And thus my heart is split on whether to praise and cherish you for your unending loyalty or gently chastise you for making your first retainers to follow four people at once.”

I gently shook my head. “We are too small and not on a war footing to worry about a strict chain of command. Nor will they be simple soldiers, expected to follow every order to the letter. I asked for their fealty to you because the last thing I need right now, or ever, is infighting within our ranks. For status, attention, anything.

“Just as Dominas are obligated to care for their Manor, Navigators must care for their crew,” I made sure to stress the ‘must’ part, as my hand subconsciously reached for my forehead. “It goes beyond obligations and oaths — it is in my flesh and blood. Family, sadaq, Manor — it matters not how it is called; once I consider you as a part of my ‘crew’, my very nature compels me to care. Obviously not by the same amount — I care more for my beloved wives than I care for the servants of my manor, but some amount is always given to all. You can call it as you wish — loyalty, noblesse oblige, hereditary moral obligations, or proteomic thought-pattern imprinting — but unending isn’t a part of it. If I perceive someone to be a legitimate threat or an inexcusable expense to me and the rest of my crew, they will be stripped of my favour. But if you consider that I am swearing oaths inside my heart to everyone I welcome in, you should understand why I am not eager to swap and change them without a proper cause or reason. Or why my priority would be in establishing clear boundaries first and foremost.”

"Must,” Anaise murmured as her hand slid off my shoulder and delved deep under my kaftan. Her fingers trailed across my skin, pausing once they brushed the scar left behind by Bragge’s anchor rod. Just as before, my dendrites freaked out at the intrusion of her magic, but I let her try to heal me once more without a comment — the structural damage was fixed already and the rest was postponed until I had the time, attention, and energy to finish the job.

“So that was why Yeva looked so certain… You know, you mentioned that previously but I always saw it as another one of your sweet talks. Your recognition of me putting my pride and status aside, willing to publicly enter your sadaq even as nothing else but a third wife of a yet-to-be-freed murk. A scandalous act that could’ve had me stripped of my inheritance and honour if my choice was a wrong one. But I believed you were bound for greatness and I was certain of your character to know I wouldn’t be treated as a mere third, despite not seeing our future Fates like a Divine would. Now that I know that ‘must’ is a part of your nature… Well, that is why you have us beside you, is it not? Apart from the expected praise and cherishing. To make our sadaq stronger together.”

Without taking her hands off my body, she turned toward the twins. “Just as he established boundaries, I will solidify the order. We know that you swore your Oaths solely because it was Erf who asked them and so you will be his retainers first and foremost. When we will feel the need to build our retinues, we will do so with our own power.”

“Anaise speaks the truth,” Irje proclaimed. “And as his First wife, I will enforce it.”

Huare cast a glance at Irje. “Does that mean no massages?”

“No children,” Anaise proclaimed. “Not without our approval and definitely not daughters. If either of you ends up pregnant with his child ‘on accident’… know that I will invoke your Oaths and claim your children as the property of our Manor!”

“Anaise-” I began.

“There are spells to preserve spilled seed, Erf. As well as other tricks. And your dalliances with Irje can often be… messy.”

“At least we don’t break beds,” Irje grumbled quietly.

Anaise coughed. “That would be an unlikely event — Huare and Kirana have their honour — but this is no longer a sadaq matter but a Manor one. Fortunately for us, I can leave the rest to you without worry. You didn’t collect wives, concubines, and Companions like a miser hoards her gold cuts before, why would you start now?”

I couldn’t help but shake my head. “Still, don’t give them ideas. Especially when they know I acquired three wives in less than a year.”

“That is a low number for an emerging daimon.” Kirana paused as the eyes turned toward her, but cleared her throat and continued further, “Not just for siring children, especially if the daimon is a woman, but to establish good relations with multiple Houses all at once. Some do it to feed their pride, some use Houses like a werbow to loose the arrow of their ambitions far afield, and some seek to avoid being beholden to a single Manor. In turn, Houses welcome daimonic children into their fold, strengthening their blood, and use daimonic sadaq-at to forge new alliances. Your approach was… unexpected.”

Anaise flicked her ear. “Because it wasn’t his approach at all. And believe me, claiming him wasn’t easy! Because of that ‘must’, without a doubt. But now Erf is ours, more so than you are his. Because of that same ‘must’.”

Her eyes turned back to me. “I am giving them ideas. Specifically, the idea that I will act as a proper Domina should and help you lead our Manor to greatness. Their antlers are yearning for touch, and you are still curious? Good. Feed their loyalty. Daimon or not, such Oaths don’t come often — especially from Pillar wermages, even unlanded ones — and deserve to be appropriately rewarded beyond your expected obligations. As your wife, I will do everything in my power to placate my mother once she hears about this, but I am quite certain she wouldn’t finance your retinue. Not directly, at the very least.”

She leaned closer to my ear, throwing a veil of silence around us. “From early childhood, Rhetors taught me that a Manor’s true strength lies in the cumulative glow of its Sparks. Their number and luminosity. My mother received similar lessons and so did every other heiress, Domina, and Matriarch of Emanai and beyond. Yes, you alone are worth dozens of wermages and Lita’af is wise to be wary about crossing you, but Houses number in thousands. Yes, you can and do rely on the Kiymetl, Enoch, and Esca when you need to stand against other Pillars, but they will expect their dues for favours rendered. As you told me yourself, my grandmother in particular made her wants quite clear and while she wasn’t able to claim your seed for my position in your sadaq, not after my proclamation to the Divine Catriona, she will demand it as soon as you approach her for another favour. Please bear that in mind for the future, especially when you confront the Kamshad.

“If you want Matriarchs to see you more than my mother’s daimon, you will need a far greater number of kattars on your sash. I have no doubts that you can invite ten more with ease and sharpen them with your knowledge to make each one worth ten, but know that the gratitude doesn’t last forever, while their expectations will grow tenfold. Hundredfold, if they perceive themselves as the source of your political power and independence. That is why you need to temper the ambitions of both sides with a third faction. Your kin. Us, your close relatives. Your children. This is why you have my mother on your side when the Kiymetl matters are involved. This is how Matriarchs keep their retinues in check. And, if someone like Huare gets close enough to consider adopting their children into our Manor, this is how we can grow our Manor faster than any Matriarch could.”

I started to reply, only to pause and look down. “What are you doing?”

Huare blinked at me with her large eyes, the horizontal pupils enhancing that innocent, doe-like look. “Making sure that they won’t be broken off this time. Rumours might spread and it could hasten my cycle; neither of which I wish to worry about.”

Meanwhile, her head along with her antlers came to rest on my lap. The tent was decently spacious by Emanai military standards, but there were still five people present in what was essentially a designated sleeping area for four. Moreover, the twins rivalled Irje in height due to their longer, unguligrade legs and Enoch genes, so all it took for Huare to land on my lap was ‘forgetting’ to scoot back after her proclamation.

My raised eyebrow was met with even more innocent blinks and puppy-eyed looks. Her sister — scandalised, my wives — amused, and I — wondering whether I bit more than I could chew and should start rueing this day already or was that still within my expectations for Huare’s antics.

But then again — I was acting like a ‘classical daimon’ with an obvious and clear power strategy and the ‘classically trained’ wermages were quick to pounce on my offer. Huare essentially proclaimed me her ‘Matriarch’ by all intents and purposes and dragged her sister along with it. Forget the antlers, I could ask her to take Muramat in Anaise’s stead and, while that won’t earn me any goodwill, Huare would be obliged to consider my request. Meanwhile, Anaise was quick to channel Huare’s budding ambition into an unorthodox by my standards but not at all surprising for wermages route. If one wished to avoid relying on other Houses apart from the Kiymetl and not seek out any more wives, that is.

The important part of her speech, however, wasn’t the use of children to stabilise and solidify the Manor’s influence nor cajoling the twins for further concessions. It was the reminder that the appearance of strength was just as important as the actual strength. Not a groundbreaking discovery by any means, posturing was essential in politics, but here it allowed me to rethink her proposal in a new light. I didn’t need to use my children as political pawns — I just needed to have children. Mine, adopted, brought in. If Yeva’s current trial bore fruit and the wer mother gave birth to wermage children, they would be seen as the children of my Manor even without me adopting them. The Matriarchs might not recognise them as ‘proper’ Emanai wermages due to the lack of ‘acceptable pedigree’ but Sparks couldn’t be ignored outright.

Obfuscation was paramount as well. If the word spread that I could somehow consistently cheat the low birthrate of wermages, no matter if it was true or not, it wouldn’t generate respect for me among the Matriarchs or even the unbridled lust for my seed but an utter, existential dread. That was where Huare’s could prove useful just as Anaise suggested. If Matriarchs looked at our Manor and saw that not only it consisted of three wives but had, what seemed to be, ‘agreeable’ retainers, a few occasional children popping up here and there wouldn’t raise too many eyebrows.

Irje made her stance on the twins and their antlers known a long time ago and Yeva cared little for wermage hijinks as long as I remained firmly by her side. If Huare was that eager to serve — I would let her.

I woke up my lash, gave it a quick stroke, and coiled it back on my sash again. My glistening thumb above Huare’s antler. “I hope that it wasn’t your sole reason for giving me your oath.”

I had to give her credit — Huare barely flinched apart from her eyes following my hand and her tongue — licking her dry lips.

“I asked about joining your retinue before. You weren’t interested back then, referring me to discuss such matters with your wives instead. But today you came to ask us for an Oath. Because now you have a need for us. The loyalty you demanded, under the shadow of the Sky Castle no less, told me that you are planning to share your secrets with us. If only to complete the task you have envisioned. Demanding them now would be a fool’s errand — I would still receive as much as you had prepared for us yet rouse suspicion and ire of your wives with my display of greed and lust for power. Asking a daimon for mere gold and silver… that would make even me cry out in shame! Our Manor will go to our eldest sister, but we aren’t destitute!”

I nodded in satisfaction and pressed my thumb against the root of her antler, gently massaging the synthesised gel into the pulsing velvet and the countless blood vessels underneath it.

“Erf?” Kirana pulled herself closer. Huare’s sigh of contentment lessened the frown on her face but she still looked worried. “What did you use?”

“Shenanigans,” Anaise smirked. “That is what he does. Learn the word, Kirana Kausar, for you will be using it often from now on.”

Judging by the tilt of her ears, Anaise was enjoying the view but it was hard to tell whether it was due to the conflicted Kirana or prostrated Huare. Or Both.

I rolled my eyes without stopping. “Worry not, I know enough about pleasure nor was I simply playing with her antlers before. It will make her experience more vibrant but won’t overwhelm her senses to the brink of addiction. It will enhance the colours of her daily life rather than make them dull and grey in comparison. Now, let us return to the topic we put aside for all this time — Irje, it is stuck isn’t it?”

Irje glanced at me, sighed, and presented her hand. “Yes… I am sorry, Erf.”

The connection looked clean, even if the locking jaws couldn’t latch on her wrist properly — wermage resilience to blame, no doubt — but the umbilical entered well, without obstructing her range of motion. I could also see it pulse with her heartbeat while the recent breakthrough as well as her ability to control the trimmer indicated a well-established connection with her nervous system. Good. It could stay in place for a while.

I shook my head. “Don’t be. Technically speaking, I asked you to hold on to it, which you are still doing as we speak. Does it interfere with your duties and day-to-day activities?”

Irje tilted her head. “Without it, I have two hands. With it — I have one hand busy and seven free.”

“You will probably have eight hands without it too,” I mused as my finger drew the first moan from my interloper. “Just as Anaise said, it was a breakthrough. The trimmer might make the spellcasting easier in general, but it won’t take away what is yours in the first place. Nor would it grant the same six arms to everyone who wears it.”

“But it will grant something?” Anaise pressed.

“Not sure. It is possible that the only reason it affected Irje to such an extent was due to her not having a formal training in the first place. But that would be a question for another day and another place. The reason I was wary of simply giving that weapon to any of you is that it needs to delve into your flesh to ‘wake up’. And it does not know what a Spark is. Or where it is located. It knows how to avoid lungs and heart but it could blindly sever your connection to magic just as quickly as a well-aimed stab of a Collector. Among other things.”

I glanced at my cougar. “This is also why I want you to keep it for now. In fact, consider it yours from now on. Use its strength if someone dares to attack us, just as you did against the foul accusations of Muramat. With it in your hand, I don’t have to worry about sneaks trying to steal yet another one of my weapons. But be sure to hold it tightly — it is somewhat loose.”

Irje’s brilliant grin was quickly replaced with a frown. “Loose? But I can’t get it off, and Muramat Nishad wasn’t able to pull it away with his magic either during our fight.”

“Well, it isn’t holding to its maximum strength. Besides, magical strength is relative — Lita’af wasn’t able to pull my lashes away, but Bragge did so with ease. Don’t try to forcefully pull it out either — that might have issues of their own. I will detach it and try to make it more usable for you once I have all the necessary tools and facilities to immediately fix anything, if something does go wrong. That means our estate, at the very least.”

I glanced at Anaise. “Or, better yet, our personal, secure manor, away from prying eyes.”

The two large ears flipped upright in surprise. “You want to ask my mother for land as soon as possible, right after declaring your Manor? Think of how that would look — not only would it make my mother appear weak and even subservient to you but many, especially among the rest of my House, might see it as a growing schism between you and her. Or even worse — a schism between you and the Kiymetl at large.”

I nodded. “I know, I am voicing my plans for the future and the reasons for doing so. You know how many eyes are watching us already, making sure we don’t grow too strong or too big. It will get worse once we return to Samat. Besides, I am not planning on asking your mother for anything big — a small villa, a retreat, nothing more. I believe some Samat Dominas complained about the noxious fumes coming from Aikerim’s manor, did they not?”

Anaise scrunched her nose. “It is a yearly ritual with their ilk. Political posturing, no more. They grimace and turn their noses up, but, once the next day comes, their servants are at our doorstep, asking for our woollen fabrics. Yes, it is a convenient excuse for us to take, but even a shepherd on the Babr slopes will know we are plotting something.”

“Why don’t you ask Kamshad?”

I turned toward Kirana. “Hmm?”

She shrugged. “You are planning to demand concessions from Lita’af Hikmat? Ask for land. Kamshad has plenty of it. I am certain she wouldn’t be surprised by such a request.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything decent,” Anaise tapped her chin in thought, “They will not relinquish anything that brings them money.”

“Does an alchemist that can turn lead into gold need fertile fields to make profit?” Huare whined. “Trade the quality for the things that you actually need and claim more land than you could otherwise…”

I glanced downward and shook my head in exasperation. It took Huare little time to figure out that my gel had a body-wide effect at enhancing her sensations and even less to start exploring its effects for herself. Her sash was loose just as the tie-string of her pants and her hand had found its place between her legs. Judging by the flush of her cheeks, she was getting close. Until my strokes turned languid and erratic from me focusing more on the conversation and ruined her rhythm.

“Irje,” I nudged my wife, “could you help me out a bit? I am somewhat… short-handed here.”

When Huare glanced at me in question, I gave her a wink. “Six, not one. And she is quite adept at handling those shapes. I know from experience.”

“That one was good too,” Huare murmured.

“Seven.” I put my finger in my mouth.

She looked at me for a second, glanced at Irje, and closed her eyes, settling in as six magical hands descended on her antlers.

“Ooh fuzzy!” Irje cooed. “And warm!”

Kirana mumbled something and covered her face. There were gaps between her fingers, however.

“It is a good strategy,” I agreed, pulling the finger out with a wet pop. “Ask for land and then give away concessions that I do not care about to demand more. Not too much, lest they grow suspicious, but enough so that they are willing to offer plenty.”

Anaise tilted her head. “What would you seek?”

My hand covered Huare’s forearm, making her body twitch in surprise. “Access, first and foremost. While we can make do without local food production, and still make great profit, we would still need to eat and trade. That means a navigable river or a seashore. And in a place where other Houses can’t easily restrict travel either. I have no desire to get embargoed just because some Domina woke up in a grumpy mood and decided to close the river for traffic. Roads… nice to have, but not important — our main imports would be in bulk anyway.”

“That is us.” Kirana nodded but quickly scratched her ear. “Well, Enoch, that is. We do the road projects in Emanai, but we know the rivers too. If only to plan where the roads would be well-placed. Sometimes, you can’t build one without a river nearby too.”

“Splendid. If we chose to take that route, I would rely on your expertise in deciding whether the area is suitable or not.” I gave her a nod and turned back to Anaise. “The rest is… less certain. Mines are likely not in our future with the recent Divine Decree but lumber would be nice to have. Proximity to Samat, for legal issues and to stay close to your mother. Not much more. What do you think?”

Meanwhile, my hand kept sliding downward. My fingers trailed Huare’s stomach, sending shivers across her body, until they reached the hem of her pants. Feeling her arch upward and into my hand, I pushed further, slowly sliding her pants down to the blatant disregard of the onlookers. Despite her rapidly reddening face, Huare didn’t stop me nor did she shy away from my touch, only cupping her mound once it became clear to her that I had no intention of stopping midway. She often cast propriety aside and so did I.

It took some time for Anaise to pull her eyes away. “…in principle, asking for land is not a bad idea, but it has its limitations. It is very easy to ask for too little or too much if you can’t estimate its value well. I am sorry Erf but estimating values is not one of your strong sides.”

I cupped Huare’s hand, feeling the intense heat barely contained by her trembling fingers. My finger gently tapped her knuckle, as if knocking on the door. “Value is subjective.”

“It is,” Anaise allowed. “But if you wish to win, you need to know both your value and theirs.”

“That’s… an unusual way to phrase one of Mansiya’s postulates,” Kirana murmured.

I nodded. “Business and war have many overlaps.”

“What I mean is that you will need assistants for such a deal. Knowledgeable enough to estimate the land’s worth. And then I would still suggest sending one of your Chirps to survey the land. Moreover, Lita’af does not have the authority to distribute the lands of her House and what she does own herself is squarely in the ‘too profitable to trade’ category — if you are willing to go this route, you will be dealing with Roshanak Gulnaz.”

I shrugged. “I wasn’t expecting this to be resolved by tomorrow either. And we were dealing with the Kamshad Matriarch from the beginning, even if through her agents. But what do you think as the daughter of Aikerim Adal? Would she approve?”

Anaise smiled. “She would be exasperated, without a doubt. But she will approve. If only because the sold land wouldn’t create a lasting connection between you and Kamshad in the same manner their owed favours could.”

“Then we have a general course of action, for now. Tomorrow, I can inform Lita’af about our… considerations and we can work from there. If everything goes well, we might have our land not too long after our return to Samat. Who knows, maybe she will give us a tour on our way back home to see any potential locations.”

Under my gentle coaxing, Huare slowly spread her folds apart. My wetted finger hovered above it just as my palm kept her from pleasing herself. I let her simmer in the knowledge that I was right there while Irje expertly adjusted her rhythm and, once I knew Huare was on the cusp, my fingertip kissed her swollen nub. Irje had to hold her antlers as Huare’s body arched further from her release, pushing and grinding her mound into my palm. I let her ride the first wave until the second one caught her completely unawares, once the chemical cocktail I left with my saliva finally reached its intended target and ignited the new fire in her loins. The concoction wasn’t as complex as what my lash created prior, but it got its job done — Huare choked on a moan as her pants ripped apart, unable to hold her legs in place. I watched her bask in pleasure for a few seconds, waiting for the second wave to go down. Then I slid my finger across her folds and plunged it deep inside her core, spreading the inferno across every surface it touched.

“-uuuuuuck,” Huare groaned into my lap as her legs clamped over my hand. I could feel my augmented bones groan and creak as the wermage thighs squeezed them with abandon.

“You are not the only one who can be bold, Huare,” I murmured. “But just as you asked — your antlers were kept safe.”

“W-with his fingers?” Kirana stuttered. “What manner of Companion sorcery was that?”

Anaise glanced at Huare, smirked, and summoned a blanket to cover her body. “Shenanigans, Kirana Kausar. I told you, you will be learning that word quickly.”

I watched the other sister squirm in place, casting furtive and frustrated glances at her grinning but barely sensate twin, then I leaned forward and stretched my arm. “Do you wish to know for yourself? You swore the same oath as she did — it would be untoward of me to satisfy the request of one and leave the other without.”

Kirana bit her lip and scooted closer, avoiding my gaze. “Just my antlers… and just your hand.”

Letting Irje pick Huare up and quickly wiping my hand clean, I brushed my fingers across the warm velvet of the other sister as I laid her head on my lap.

“Welcome to our Manor.”