Blue Hillock City, Witcher Knight barracks…
Seated at various spots in the common area polishing their armors, oiling their swords, and organising their equipment, the witcher knights had no choice but to engage in these menial tasks themselves.
Because they had been reassigned to this city from other places, the servants that usually did these things for them were absent. It also didn't help that the knights stationed here were also out on a mission.
The familiar clank of metal boots reached everyone's ears and they perked up, just in time to catch the fuming expression of their appointed leader as he strode into the base.
"I take it the meeting didn't go well," one of the tallest knights present, Edward, a Spellbreaker himself, stood up alongside the others and greeted.
"Goddamned nobles. Each one of them is slimier than the last," Ninther spat with venom and started to unclasp his armor, two of the lower ranked knights helping him along.
One aided in the removal of his thick and heavy cloak while the other supported his efforts to escape from the suffocation of his breastplate, their combined experience getting him free in no time.
"He said he has no authority over us, so he doesn't know why I thought he'd know the whereabouts of our brothers. The only thing he confirmed was that they hired some local mercenaries and went into the forest."
Plopping down in a seat behind a war table, Ninther's dissatisfaction with Count Vanlier's pointed statements regarding the free reign of the knights was evident on his face.
But that was currently the least of his worries.
After delivering Sage Goth's crystal ball to knight Willis and recounting the spine chilling events that took place during the exchange, he and the Holy Knight deduced that the invaders were somewhere in the Greenland Forest.
Needing more time to mobilise the entire might of the witcher knight army, Ninther had been sent here to one, serve as a vanguard, two, determine a suitable location for the main force set to arrive in a few days, and three, find out as much as he could about the enemy.
It didn't matter how little they managed to ferret out. Every tiny detail was important.
To accomplish this task, he had been given a hundred men.
And while on any other day he'd be ecstatic about leading such a large group into valiant battle and smite down some filthy heretics, he wished his brothers stationed here hadn't set off to do same at this critical juncture.
Every one of the knights assigned to him and he himself had zero knowledge on how to navigate the near labyrinthine forest. Their missing brothers however did.
If they were here, their knowledge and experience navigating it would have been instrumental in the discussion and formulation of a plan to root out the invaders.
"Sir!" One of the knights marched into the camp and said," I noticed some unfamiliar faces outside and I had some people look into it. It seems the local gang is spying on us. Should we do something about it?"
"Ignore them," Ninther waved dismissively. "Vanlier must be worried since we entered the city with so many men. This is just his way of keeping an eye on us. We'll be heading into the forest in two days. Let them follow us there too if they want."
Fixing his gaze on the spread out parchment map of the Greenland Forest, the knight leader brushed the issue of spies aside and tried to make sense of the frankly…gibberish before him and deduce a suitable route into the forest's depths.
"Edward, come take a look. I need your opinion on this," he called, "What paths should we take? I'm thinking we split up. Ten squads with ten men each. Surely the search will be faster, no?"
☀☀☀
It goes without saying, after Mary relayed the news of the witcher knight's movements to Keoghan, new directives were given to her, Greem, and Anderson.
They were to deal with the hundred man force on their own.
It couldn't be helped. The clan adepts had their hands tied with the forward base's construction. They couldn't just up and leave to reinforce Greem and co, no matter how much they wanted to.
In no position to protest the insane order or the unfair treatment, the three decided to meet and discuss how they were going to handle this.
As for why Anderson was also part of this meeting, he was still under Greem's control even though he didn't know it. And also because it was Keoghan's order.
Being the one who'd covered much ground within the large forest, Mary chose the meeting location, a lush green clearing at the foot of a small mountain.
Greem arrived there first, the place not being far from his current hunting grounds.
When he noticed the crystal clear stream nearby and the uninhabited cave that still smelled of their former owners—at least to his sensitive nose—a wide grin formed on his face.
He understood Mary's intent unmistakably. She missed him just as much as he missed her, and she wanted to make up for lost time… even though it had only been a little more than a week.
Very much looking forward to the meeting and what would happen after or maybe before it (it all depended on how eager they both were), he tossed a rock snake golem and summoned it.
Despite its reduced size due to the plane's low elementium density, the earth construct served its purpose perfectly. Greem commanded it to coil in on itself and form a rough sphere, the end product resembling a large boulder.
Landing on top of it in a single leap, he perched himself on it, one leg dangling and the other up to his chest and serving as a rest for his arm.
He waited like that for more than an hour before Anderson arrived, the black robed old man stepping out of the forest.
Even then Greem didn't move and simply continued to cast his gaze into the distance, watching in the direction he could sense Mary drawing closer and closer.
When darkness settled on the land and the winds grew chilly, that's when his lover appeared, and she wasn't alone, the flapping of multiple leathery wings overshadowing the silence of the clearing.
While Mary immediately transformed into a crimson streak and zoomed towards him, the six blood servants escorting her shifted from their giant bat forms to their normal human ones before landing a short distance away.
Locked in an embrace so tight a normal human would have been crushed to nothing, the lovesick couple demonstrated the depth of their mutual longing for each other.
Lips fought wildly and tongues battled in a frenzy, the smooching sounds propagated by the night winds to the onlookers, the blood thralls in particular shocked and unsure of how to feel at this unexpected side of their mistress.
Without a care in the world, Greem and Mary indulged in each other for a good while until their hungers were sated a bit, peeling their hands out of the other's hair with great reluctance.
When they separated and saw the affection, lust, and longing in the other's eyes, their lips and… certain parts of them trembled, and they nearly dove into another round.
In the end however they didn't, their astounding self-control allowing them to assert themselves and the matter at hand too serious for them to dive into the fun without at least discussing it first.
"I missed you," Greem said, strengthening his grip on her hand and rubbing his thumb over her smooth knuckles.
Smiling, the slightly abashed vampire expressed the same sentiment, though in a voice lower than her regular tone. "Me too."
Returning to his seat atop the boulder, Greem saw the blushing girl lower herself to sit beside him and he pulled on her arm, dropping her into his lap.
Surprised at the development but loving it all the same, Mary relaxed and leaned back, twisting her head to look back at him with playful reproach, only to look forward in a hurry when the up-close view sent her mind on another lustful trajectory.
He himself suffering from the effects of the close proximity and a certain stubborn part fighting him for control of his blood, he didn't waste any more time and dived straight in.
"Tell me everything."
Mary nodded. "There are one hundred and seventeen witcher-knights. Fifteen are Spellbreaker knights and the rest are all regular ones. Their leader is called Ninther Mino, a knight well known for his discipline and talent. According to Vanlier, he plans to enter the forest with his men sometime after tomorrow."
"Vanlier? Who is that?"
"Oh right. I forgot. He's the Count of Blue Hillock city. He's one of mine now."
"How many have you turned?"
Mary instantly knew he was worried about her, so she immediately assuaged his concerns. "Its okay. I've already recovered my blood essence," she said, raising her left hand and straightening her fingers so she could see the red ring properly. "Your gift has been very helpful."
Grabbing the raised hand, Greem traced the ring and sent his Spirit into it, finding much less blood within it than expected. She must've used all her accumulated stock to recover.
"You know you have nothing to prove to me right?"
"I know," Mary laughed lightly, "It's just that securing my hold on the city took more embraces than I expected. That's all." She turned to him after the last part, sharing a reluctantly short kiss with him.
Wrapping his arms around her midriff and placing his jaw on her head, he hummed in acceptance. "Mm. I believe you. We went off topic. You were saying something about Vanlier."
"Yes. He's the ruler of Blue Hillock City. He's quite …talkative, but he says a lot of smart things."
"Oh really, like what?"
"He suggested some ways to deal with the knights. But I want to hear yours," she looked up trying to see his face. "I'm sure you already have a plan. Miser I always—"
She paused suddenly and sucked in breath, her arousal spiking sharply as Greem pinched her nipple.
It took her a second or two before she calmed down. In a bid to retaliate, she hit his arms playfully, inwardly wondering how the massive things moved so fast and without her noticing.
Simply laughing it off, the culprit explained (of course) his plan. "They are building an illusion barrier back in the base to hide it from sight, but visual obscuration is all it can do. If a beast or the knights wander past its range, they'll discover it easily.
We can't let them split up because of this. Though… that would have been the optimal way to face them. Fifteen Spellbreaker knights. That's 15 Adepts… and the three of us against them..."
At the mention of three, the couple both looked in the direction of Anderson, finding him still standing there.
They had completely forgotten about him.
Frowning, Mary said in a loud voice, "Filthy old man! Come and kneel down here," she gestured to the base of the giant rock.
Hidden under his hood, the fuming old man's expression made a quick, unnatural shit from anger at being ignored to placid subservience, the trigger words bringing the real and obedient part of him to the surface.
With the urgency one would find in a servant, the old Adept hurried over to where his mistress pointed and dropped on his knees and lowered his head.
Greem watched the unfolding events with a slightly funny expression, Mary's choice of trigger phrase very much telling of her feelings regarding the Adept.
"We can kill him during the battle right?" she asked, her voice devoid of any warmth.
"Yes," Greem said without even thinking much about it. "Frankly, I'm tired of this hide and seek we're playing with the clan. During or after the battle you can deal with him however you wish."
A bit of the missing warmth returned to Mary's tone. "Thank you."
After this he explained his plan to her, something that didn't take very long due to how short and simple it was.
Her trust in him absolute and unwilling to spend another second out of his pants, Mary sent her blood thralls back to Blue Hillock City with specific instructions and a communication talisman to remain apprised of the situation.
As for Anderson, they sent him to prepare the location they'd chosen for the upcoming battle, his presence completely unneeded and unwanted for what was about to happen next.
When they confirmed that they were indeed alone in the clearing, Greem kept his arms around Mary and jumped down the artificial boulder, giving in to the raging battle within and letting blood rush to an enthusiastic part of him.
Not disoriented in the slightest by the sudden movement, Mary levitated up a bit and matched the enthusiasm, grinding her shapely backside against his steellike hardness and connecting her Spirit to his.
The pole digging into her made a direct jump from steel to adamantium when he heard her message, the world blurring for a moment before they reappeared in the cave, large hands already pawing at her armored pants.
In the outside world, the rock snake followed its most recent command and crawled to the mouth of the cave, coiling its body around the hole and trapping the cacophony of lustful and amorous sounds within.
****
Author's note:
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