Book Two

Ivy grunted. The bedside table was sturdy and well made but one leg was slightly shorter than the rest and it knocked against the floor of the inn with quiet thumps. The diminutive woman stood on her tiptoes with the worn corner of the old table nestled into her crotch. The loud knocking of wood against hollow floor increased in volume and tempo as her hips rocked forward and back in quick jerks as the hard corner rubbed against her womanhood.

The tips of white hair brushed against her jawline and she squeezed her eyes shut, pushing the distracting sensation away and conjuring more images of the barkeeper’s son. Her pleasure began to bloom just as three loud raps against the inn door cut through the room.

“Miss, is everything okay?”

Ivy huffed and leaned over the table, her mouth twitched in irritation as her orgasm shriveled and died before it was fully formed. She closed her eyes. “Everythin's fine,” she called and lowered herself to her heels, tempering her nerves.

“I heard –”

Ivy was already wrenching the door open. She looked up into the young but handsome face of her muse, the barkeeper’s gorgeous, idiot son. He was tall and had the body only a hard life can sculpt, it took everything she had to keep from pulling him into her room and quickly making a man of him. He swallowed hard and blushed but didn’t look away from her large hanging breasts. She balled her fist around a handful of his shirt and pulled him down roughly to eye level. “Do you know why I have white hair, boy?”

He swallowed again and shook his head.

“My father was a djinn. It turns out, he had a thing for halfling whores and dispelling contraceptive magic. I never got the chance to meet him but his blood flows through my veins.” her face darkened. “Interrupt me again and you’ll find out what that means.” She brightened her glowing green eyes for effect in the dim hallway before shoving the young man away and slamming the door.

She leaned against the sturdy door and sighed. Her soaked quim cloth was now uncomfortably cold and she walked over to her bed, pulling her dark leather pants up over her bulbous posterior. The metal fastening hooks of her blackened leather corset clicked as she secured her heavy breasts. She looked down at her oversized chest and cursed her heritage before pulling her arms through the supportive straps that dug into the tops of her otherwise bare shoulders.

Her brown belt cinched her waist slightly and she pulled on her long black gloves, then completed the form fitting outfit with black boots. Normally she wore a heel but they were too impractical for travel so she opted for a tailored soldier’s boot.

She looked down at her reflection in the wash basin and combed her fingers through her straight, chin length hair. She touched her neck with one hand, running her fingers from her chin to her collarbone. She smiled to herself then donned the cold, steely expression she would wear for the remainder of the day. Her fingers gingerly lifted the black leather collar, delicately pressed it against her pale skin, then deftly fastened it around her throat.

She touched her neck again, this time running her fingers around the tight band that pressed against her at all times. She felt fresh warmth begin to grow between her legs but she ignored the sensation and walked from the room and down the stairs.

The tavern had a single window, a large multi-pane rectangle of poorly stained glass that took in the morning light and muddied it with ugly colors that somehow suited the establishment. The barkeeper was obsessed with the window, polishing it multiple times a day.

“Barkeep,” she said with a curt nod, but his back was to her.

He jumped as she spoke and his friendly face shone orange in the light of the pane he was currently wiping. “Ma’am,” He said, then his face curved from a friendly smile to a wry smirk. “Sorry 'bout muh boy, he hasn’t learned what sounds should cause concern, and which should be left well alone.”

“Well,” Ivy said, pulling the sleeve of her long glove up over her elbow, “I’ve half a mind to teach him the difference.” She didn’t wink or smile, just walked out into the road beyond the dingy inn. She liked to shock people with her sense of humor, something an inquisitor didn't usually have room for in their dark line of work.

She did wish she could show the boy the creak of an old bed though. She wanted to suck the seed from his balls and do as she was told by the lowest of caste. Sadly, her station didn’t allow such things, if every barkeeper's son had dominated her, she wouldn’t be very good at her job.

Perhaps if she were less conspicuous she could sneak into a tavern and pretend to be a wench for an evening, but a half djinn of her build and features wasn’t something you quickly forgot, especially so if she was teaching you the ways of her body.

She walked down the row of houses and shops until she reached the village guild hall, by far the largest building in town. The guild halls of Yore were commissioned by The Guild itself and usually served as general purpose buildings as well as being the central hub for adventurers and guild activity. She pushed open the doors of the guild hall and silently glided across the large, well lit common room.

The guild master sat comfortably in a large chair. He didn’t hear Ivy approach but she was used to that, and preferred it. She liked to watch people in their natural environment. He was digging into one of his nostrils while reading a small pamphlet.

When she had seen enough, she cleared her throat. The man rocked forward and cleared his own throat in turn, “Sorry miss, didn’t see you – “ he stopped mid sentence and his eyes and mouth widened in delight “Ivy Ginspitter?”

Ivy’s hard mask cracked and she cackled, “I haven’t heard that name in a long, long time. Damn you Dom, I’m an inquisitor now, I have to be mysterious and intimidating.”

He wiped his finger on his chest then leaned forward, grabbing his bearded chin with a broad hand. “An inquisitor? How in the nine hells did you manage that? Let me guess, you’re going to gain access to their vaults and rob them blind. If you’ve come for a getaway driver, I’m in.”

Ivy shook her head, still laughing. “The Light has put my talents to use, Dom, Legal use.”

Dom recoiled as if he had touched a furnace. “They really got to you. What dirt do they have on you? Is this an alternative to a prison sentence?”

Her face hardened back into her usual death mask. “Dom. I am a follower of The Light. An inquisitor with the highest authority. I answer to the high abbot, and the idiot king, none other.”

Dom nodded, a twinkle in his eye and a curve to his lips. “Of course, I was just remembering when I made you beg me to –”

“Shut the fuck up Dom,” she whispered, looking around the empty guild hall.

Dom raised his hands in surrender. “No, I get it, the higher your authority in the world, the better your submission must feel in the bed.”

Ivy blushed and narrowed her eyes at the old guild master. “You still married?”

He tapped the golden ring on his finger with a sigh. “‘Fraid so…” They stared at each other for a beat before Dom broke the awkward silence. “So, what brings a high inquisitor to a backwater border town?”

Ivy clicked her tongue and sucked air through her teeth. “I have been saddled with a collection job. An elf priestess has entered human territory, as per the accord, elven military isn’t allowed past our border, so there was a handoff to our boys in Tradewind. She was supposed to arrive in Westby a tenday ago. The abbot is concerned she wasn’t adequately guarded by His Majesty and has sent me, a high inquisitor, to investigate." Her tone tensed as she spoke and she practically spit the last few words. She took a breath, calming her nerves. "Has such a party been through here?”

Dom shook his head and shrugged. “What does The Light care if an elf waif gets lost on the road?”

“The Light works in mysterious ways Dom. The abbot however, is much more predictable. All you need to know is that the elf is important to the temple.”

Dom narrowed his eyes and leaned forward, looking over his glasses at the girl. She could feel his mind filling in the gaps and she fidgeted internally. “This is big,” he said at last, and pointed to his nose. “They wouldn’t send their best – “ Ivy gave a modest shrug but Dom pointed a stubby finger at her. “Don’t give me that Ginspitter. You work alone and you get the job done, I know it, the abbot knows it. Whatever this is, you’re the quiet solution. I need to know if my community is in danger.”

Ivy looked at the bar and chewed her lip before looking up from under her ivory bangs. “Look Dom, my job here is to keep the peace. If I go telling doomsday stories to every guild master I’ve fucked…” She shook her head. “I’m sorry but from this point forward I have to keep this visit purely professional. I need to see your bounty board and any bounties you’ve got hiding in your desk.” Her eyes were hard again, but tinged with sadness, she didn’t want it to be this way.

Dom nodded once, his eyes too going hard, he tried not to look hurt but she knew his face too well for deception. He flicked his fingers toward the bounty board and sat back down, pretending to read his pamphlet.

Ivy scanned the loose leaflets pinned to the board, she unpinned them all and flipped through them with calculating efficiency, taking a few and pinning the rest to the board. She walked back to the counter and laid out three leaflets. “Disappearing trade caravans, missing women, and a vacant farm. You have a nest nearby. Something semi-feral, probably tribal by now; kobolds, gnolls, lizardfolk, goblins…”

Dom looked up at the last word. He licked his upper lip and smoothed his mustache with one hand.

“What do you know, Dom?”

Dom walked to a small desk and back to the counter, adjusting his silver glasses. He slid a worn scrap of parchment next to the other three bounties.

Ivy’s eyes glanced at the parchment then searched Dom’s face. “You knew?”

Dom removed his glasses and massaged his temples with thumb and forefinger. “I lost a girl a couple weeks ago, a good one. She saw the bounty and ran off, alone… haven’t seen her since.”

“They know the risks, Dom. You have a duty – “

“I don’t feed goblins!” Dom slammed the counter with a meaty fist so hard the impact rattled the front doors of the guild hall.

Ivy’s heart pounded and her senses buzzed with the outburst but she took a steadying breath. “I will send for the nearest goblin slayer, but in the meantime this bounty will remain posted and you will double the payout with my seal attached.” She slid a thin metallic pin across the counter. “Do I make myself clear, Dominic Delacroix, Guild Master, and sworn protector of the realm?”

Dom didn’t look up.

“In four villages this is my first promising lead, I will continue working backwards from the route they would have taken to Westby. If you find her, keep her here until I return.”

Ivy didn’t wait for a response. She turned and walked from the guild hall, wiping a single tear as the door closed behind her.