The Princess and the Blade

[Soran Nightblade]

As the power in the room settled, Kishva stumbled back into her Ivies' arms. "What the hell was that?" she shuddered. She glared at Tenara. "You dare attack me in my own compound?"

Havi scanned the men around her, looking at their hands. They each had tattooes on the back like the one Ren had worn, colored jewels symbolizing their degree of favor with Kishva. He singled out the one with the highest number of jewels and lunged for him. He tore his claws across the man's neck and shoulder, dragging deep, bleeding gashes into his flesh. The man screamed while the other Ivie retreated, still guarding Kishva safely behind him. Havi held up the last Toothsbane bead for them all to see, then tossed it toward Kishva. The Ivis beside her caught it promptly. "Fix him. He's one of your favorites, isn't he?" Havi asked flatly.

The hesitation on Kishva's face as she looked at her injured Ivis was all the response he needed. Havi swept Tenara up in his arms and threw the men a challenging look. None of them seemed eager to tangle with the infamous warrior, and their Yurivis didn't command them to fight. Havi took the opportunity, and ran. They were halfway down the hall when a hand grabbed his elbow and hooked him aside into a stone corridor.

Ren did an admirable job of not shitting himself when Thvoros grabbed his throat and snarled in his face. He released the larger Ivis with an uneven breath and managed to whisper "This way."

He kept hold of Laurius's hand as he led him further and further down the corridor, leaving Havi to follow on his own. He stopped beside a heavy grate on the floor and reached down to pull it aside. The action revealed that his hands were shaking wildly, but he nonetheless managed to tug the grate aside. "Hurry," he breathed, gesturing them down into an unfinished stone tunnel.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius caught sight of Ren’s shaking hands and wrapped his over them a moment, giving them a squeeze. He didn’t know what to say beyond that. There would be time enough to talk when they were someplace safe—if there was such a place on this world.

He looked up at Havitharon, and Tenara cradled in his arms. The battered woman had curled in towards her Ivis as much as she reasonable could for the position. The air still felt strange, so he imagined she was focusing on keeping that wild, unpredictable magic tethered inside. He fought back an apology. For one, there was no time, and doing so risked setting her off. So he looked back at Ren, gave a swift nod, and slipped trustingly into the dark.

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren looked dazed as he stared as Laurius while Laurius fled into the tunnel, and Havi after him with the princess. It was like watching himself in slow motion as he slipped in after them and tugged the grate back into place. He pushed at Havi's back, urging them forward while the tunnel grew darker than pitch around them. "Don't stop," he whispered into the eerie silence of the tunnel. The ceiling gradually dropped, until they all had to crawl to continue. Havi was forced to let go of Tenara and move single file. "Tenara's wrist is hurt," he growled. Crawling on the rocky ground must have been excruciating for her.

"A bit further," Ren pleaded, "It will open up soon."

Ahead of Laurius, who was in the lead, a dull blue-green glow filled the tunnel. As they drew closer to it, the glow illuminated the walls of the tunnel as it expanded into a subterranean cavern. Bioluminescent mushrooms grew along the walls of the cavern, which was the size of a small room, but large enough for them all to spread out and stand.

Once they were all inside, Ren sagged against the wall, wide-eyed.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius pulled himself up to his feet and looked around, admiring the glowing fungi like a good scientist would. He hesitated on touching it, knowing that it could easily be toxic. Fungi often could be poisonous when eaten, but what if this place had fungi with toxic flesh… His mind began to whirl with questions until Tenara half rolled out of the tunnel with a cry.

Tenara had limped along on one hand and her knees as best she could, but doing so proved to be a lot of work for someone who hadn’t eaten in several days. She occasionally had to catch her balance with her bad hand and would choke on a cry. The pain, though, did have the benefit of finally dulling the rage enough to quiet her magic—for now.

She collapsed onto her side with relief when they reached the smoother stone beyond the tunnel. Her gaze swept the room, taking in the blurred colors.

“Are we safe here?” Laurius asked. “Should we keep going?”

Tenara shifted her gaze to him, managing to come up off the ground with much more strength than she looked like she possessed. She limped towards him, brandishing the blade.

Laurius began to stumble, whirling to run away. It was almost comical how he danced around groups of mushrooms and held his hands up to keep her at bay.

“Let’s talk this out!”

“I am going to kill you,” she snarled.

“Please, just listen—“ He stumbled back, holding up Havitharon’s sword.

“Stop running away!” her grip tightened on Ren’s blade. “Hold him still!”

[Soran Nightblade]

The command jolted through his dagger and finally jogged Ren out of his daze. The Ivis staggered to his feet and rushed for Laurius. He obeyed her by holding him still, but did so by pinning the man to the wall and covering him with his body. "Please, don't," he begged her. "Please, Yurivis." He braced a shaking hand over the back of Laurius's head and clenched his eyes, ready for them both to be blasted into the rock.

[Emora Deen]

Ren’s pleading jogged a memory of him pleading with Elias while he held the dagger and ordered him to do much the same. She looked at the dagger in her hand, and sucked in a horrified breath. She shook her head and bent to place the dagger at their feet before taking a limping step forward and drawing Ren from where he pinned Laurius. “I’m sorry, Ren,” she whispered, her voice breaking with tears. She wrapped her arm tight around him before brushing a hand apologetically and comfortingly down his face. “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have done that.”

[Soran Nightblade]

The touch of gentle fingers on his cheek made Ren slowly open his eyes to meet Tenara's. At the sight of her tears, the anguish in his expression washed blank, swept beneath a dutiful mask. "I thank you, Yurivis," he murmured earnestly.

Havi touched Tenara's shoulders lightly from behind her. "How soon will they find this place?" he asked the other Ivis.

"They will check my arboretum first," Ren said. But they will try these tunnels before long. We should get out to the wider cave system." He gestured toward several additional corridors that opened off the back of the room. His hand shook wildly as he pointed, and he pulled it back in against his chest.

Havi didn't miss the man's swiftly crumbling composure, and he was worried about Tenara. He himself had barely processed the fact that they were back on his world. "Let's... take a minute here," he proposed gently to them both.

Ren didn't even answer, but turned immediately back toward Laurius as if the man might have disappeared from behind him.

[Emora Deen]

Laurius had been watching the way Tenara comforted and apologized to Ren—as if she were trying to make up for some heinous, awful thing. They had only been parted a matter of days, and before that (not counting the time she was high off of mushrooms and dancing naked in his office) Tenara and Ren had somewhat distant, respectful interactions. Her touch was tender, affectionate—almost sisterly. While Laurius saw the connection, he knew it was likely Ren would only ever see Tenara as someone to serve.

He opted not to chime in about the rest. His nerves wanted to propel them forward until safety was certain, but he didn’t miss Ren’s shaking, and Tenara looked as if she would crumble if someone made her take one more step. He also didn’t miss the way she flinched at the first brush of Havi’s hand on her shoulder. But, after he suggested they rest, she curled her hand around the one Havitharon had placed there and guided him to the wall where a tall, spindly mushroom grew. She sank down with this heart-wrenching weariness and pulled Havi down with her, and leaned her head on his shoulder.

Laurius looked at Ren and then the sword in his hand. He touched the man’s arm, ran his hand comfortingly down it, and took a moment to deliver Havitharon’s sword back to its rightful wielder. He hesitated a moment, but knelt down before them, and offered the sword to her with his head bowed. He placed the bloodied steel on her lap, and backed away without lifting his head.

When he was a few feet away, he turned back to Ren, and did as she had done to Havi, and pulled the man down next to him along the wall. Laurius scooped up the dagger Tenara had left at their feet and tucked it next to him. Then, he took the man’s hand and pulled it into his lap and held it, lacing their fingers together.

Tenara hesitated before reaching out and grabbing Havitharon’s bloodied sword, pulling the blade close to her. “It needs to be cleaned,” she whispered. Her nail scraped at the dried blood, and then traced the blade back to the hilt. Her throat grew tight. “I saw them throw the fire in the windows… Heard the screaming. I… I thought… How are you both alive?”

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren's fingers latched around Laurius's hand for dear life and he twisted to push his forehead against his chest, pressing him with his horns. This is all wrong," he said thinly. "You were never supposed to come here too. I thought anything was fine if I could last long enough to get her started here, but now..." He squeezed him tighter despite his panicked breaths. "Only three in and one back. There's not enough power. I'm not hers anymore. I'm yours. But here, they'll..."

____

Havi rested a hand lightly over Tenara's as she fussed with his blade. "Laurius waited for the flames to weaken his ropes, then used the Toothsbane that Ren left with him to restore enough health to break free. He took the sword and went out the window, but the fire was still raging, and I was no help at that point. He was unconscious for a long time."

He sighed. "The stones on the sword were charred beyond use in the heat, and my soul started to break down. Laurius traded what was left of his estate to buy components and pulled an all-nighter installing new soul stones. Then we begged, borrowed, and stole to try to catch up with Elias's caravan." He stroked her cheek grimly. "It took us too long. I'm so sorry."

[Emora Deen]

Laurius looked around at the room as Ren pressed into him. He had devised all of this to put Tenara someplace he thought was safe…

“They matter not,” Laurius said, a determined, self-assured edge in his voice. He lifted a hand to curl along the back of Ren’s head. He felt this strangeness in his chest, a tightness in his throat. “We won’t be parted again… I promise. And… as for a way home… we will find that too.”

—-

Tenara admired the blade. There had been ones damaged before the fire, from when she’d killed the crown prince of Arken after helping bring Havitharon into their world. But even those were new now…

She glanced at where Laurius and Ren were and thought, maybe, she wouldn’t kill him. He had saved Havitharon… and no matter what had happened to her, Havitharon mattered more than that.

“It was’t too long,” she whispered, trying to keep the more bruised side of her face slightly turned away from him. She knew what he meant—that they hadn’t got there before someone hurt them. “You came for me. I never thought I’d see you again, Havi. Never would have been too long.”

She felt her eyes welling with tears, and had no desire to cry in front of him anymore than she already had or likely would. She blinked them and looked out at the glowing cave, shivering as a chill rattled through her. “This is where you’re from? Is it always this cold or is it just the caves?”

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi couldn't bring his eyes to follow her gaze. Now that they were staying still, he'd noticed the wounds on her face and neck. Violent emotions punched through him, but he held his tongue. There was no one here he could punish, so he had no choice but to bottle his rage. "This is where I'm from," he confirmed evenly. "Rock-devouring wyrms built these tunnels millennia ago. When the world cooled and the rains grew acid, the wyrms died off. The species that could adapt moved underground."

He shook his head in disbelief. "We need to get out of here, now. What do you need for another portal, Artisuren?"

Ren hung his head heavier against Laurius. "I don't remember."

"What do you mean, don't remember?" Havi snapped. "You literally just did it."

Ren pulled back from Laurius and turned a glare on him, looking every bit like a cat with its claws out. "I built the portal under duress. I was panicked and exhausted and half-delirious. How could I remember the entire ritual? It's miracle enough I pulled it off the first time. If I got one thing wrong, it could rip you all apart!" he hissed. He shook his head. "You weren't supposed to come through. There was only enough power for the Yurivis to go back."

"Just Tenara?" Havi's frustration outpaced his intellect for a minute. "What kind of plan was that? What were you planning to do, genius?"

The other Ivis had stopped looking at him and was glowering at the floor. "You were both dead."

Ren's tone sent a chill through Havi's bones. He'd fucked up.

[Emora Deen]

Tenara curled her hand over Havi’s to still his anger. She had heard Ren’s tone, as had Laurius. The merchant looked a little ill.

Ren had been willing to return to this place and trap himself here because he thought Laurius was dead. Tenara could sympathize, she had tried to make Vardner angry enough to kill her.

“I wanted a way back to my family…” Tenara explained, trying to shift the subject. “Before that, I tried to talk Ren into preserving himself in the dagger, but he didn’t want to leave me alone….” Tenara lowered her voice for Havi. “He did what he could to keep us safe, even offering…” She cut herself off.

Her voice hadn’t been quiet enough because Laurius’s head lifted. “Offering?”

Tenara turned her face away, looking at the small hole they’d crawled through. “We should keep moving, shouldn’t we?”

[Soran Nightblade]

Havi closed his eyes. While he'd been floundering in the snow, Artisuren had been doing what Havi should have been... protecting Tenara any way he knew how. A newfound gratitude glowed to life inside him. Havi wasn't sure he wanted to know, but something in Tenara's voice made him unable to leave it alone. "Offering what?"

"You're just upsetting her," Artisuren snapped. "I did nothing out of the ordinary, so drop it."

Havi blinked. It was typical for Ren to speak that way to Laurius, but this was the first time the Ivis had the balls to do it with him.

[Emora Deen]

"It was very brave," Tenara insisted.

Laurius brushed a hand over Ren's hair. He wanted to know... and then again he didn't want to know. He was afraid to know, because Tenara was right. This was all his fault. "Brave?"

"Elias was going to use the dagger to make him... hurt me," she said with a shaking voice, and never had two words had more implied meaning. "Ren offered himself to him in replacement. He declined, and it threw him off us both for the night."

Laurius's arms became painfully tight around Ren's shoulders. "I'm sorry," he whispered fiercely and pressed his head down over Ren's. "I'm so sorry."

[Soran Nightblade]

Ren had been holding his breath tight since Tenara began speaking. He had no way of knowing how his master would react to his offering himself to someone else. Kishva would have punished him brutally, no matter the reason.

He clenched his eyes as Laurius's grip on him grew tighter. But then he felt the other man's body curl over his protectively and whisper an apology to him, even as he seemed determined to squeeze him to death. A sense of safety that made no sense given the circumstances finally pried open the clenched jaws of anxiety that had been crushing him for days. His breath fell from him like dead weight and his muscles went loose in Laurius's grip. "You're very warm, Master," he observed hazily.

_________

Havi might have made a comment about them getting their own wyrm tunnel, but he was busy subjecting Tenara to a very similar constriction technique. "You have me," he murmured to her. "You have me now."