the Leathermines

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“Milady, it’s not needed, but I thank you!”

Laun handed the silver to the man, the horses and the people having been watered, and some information about the troops that had used the man’s field just a few days before gleaned through conversation.

“Since they did not pay you for the use, it is only right that someone from the royal family take care of it, good farmer.”  Laun held out her hand and the man did not hesitate to give the woman in men’s riding clothes a warriors’ grip.

“An’ who are you?”

Silar spoke before Laun could.  “She is Princess Laun, daughter of King Falmir.”

Laun smiled at the man and quietly said, “I hope that your day goes well after we leave.”

The man held up the silver and nodded.  “It already has, yer Highness.”

Laun mounted and swung her palfrey to meet the others who had already mounted.  She waved to the farmer and they rode off.

“Was that the fourth or fifth troop camp?”  Fount trotted next to Laun and raised his voice to be heard over the hoofbeats.

“I am not sure at this point.  Could be fifth.”  Laun looked at the destruction left by the Rosemond military in the field as they went by.  “Erin, do you think this was one of yours again?”

The Baron moved up to pace Laun and said, “I don’t think so.  He said they went West when they packed up.  If they were from my lands, they were completely lost.”

Laun was quiet.  She put heels to her bay and came to the lead horse.  “The sun will be down in about an hour.  Hunter?  How clear is the road to the Capitol City around here?

The large man was at the lead and he glanced over and then back to the road.  “Until a series of Y and cross roads, not too bad.  We will have to stop in about two hours if we keep this pace.”

“Is there an Inn you trust or is it open air for us tonight?”

He looked up, Laun doing the same to gauge the sky.  “No big clouds.  I would take camping around a fire against an inn in this area.  Unsavory lot, all of them.”

Laun made a small chortle that Hunter heard.  He shot Laun a smile and went back to looking at the road.  Laun let Grace fall back some and was content to be in the middle of the group as they went along.

Dougal had not directly looked at or talked to Laun.  A full day’s travel and he was being quiet.  There was a cold place inside of Laun when she thought of that morning.  She had not spent enough time with her cousin, had not talked enough with her cousin.  What he had done was out of place with what she knew about him, or thought she knew.  Had it been the permissive nature of her household, of her, that had let him think it was something he could do?  Laun glanced towards her cousin and did not catch his eyes, again.

Evan rode up and handed Laun a water skin.  She held onto it with both hands as Grace trotted under her, aiming the stream into her mouth.  She took several big swallows and handed the leather bag back to the assassin.  Laun nodded her thanks and he fell back again.  It was refreshing, and she noticed that no one else was given a sip of the water.

A thought ran across her mind and she mentally shrugged.  If he had wanted to kill her, he could have done it at any time once he was brought into her small group of servant/assassins.  He was being a good attendant, keeping her watered to keep them on the road.

The colors of the sky were pale as the sun went down. The moon was smaller and above the horizon, not as much light and not as welcoming as it had been days before.  The night was cool and dark when they found a place off the main road to stop, a line of bushes between where they were to rest and the road to protect them some.

It looked like there had been people there recently.  A fire ring of stones held charred sticks and logs, some heat not from the day coming from them.  It only took a little bit of effort to bring the fire back to life, some windfall from a ways down the road helping to feed it.

Marie had packed some of her travel cakes, Laun’s mouth almost watering from the thought.  She did not know why they would make her do that as they were just travel cakes, but they had been her introduction to real travel food and she felt the tension and stress of traveling through her whole body.  She smiled to herself at the ways her mind connected things.

The horses were tethered together, a hobble of a log in the middle of the line.  The wet horse blankets were thrown over the bushes to dry and the saddles were lined up where people wanted to sleep.  Laun put Grace’s saddle a few paces from the fire and then went to sit by the fire.  She really didn’t care who wanted to be near her or not right then.

She did care that her back and breasts hurt.  She was planning on sleeping in her leathers, her sword belt already off and at her saddle.  She was not sure how to ask for someone to help her relieve the pressure from her breasts.  Stripping down and waving them at those around her was not an option.  She could feel a coolness on her tunic under her leather jerkin and knew that her nipples were leaking.  A hand under the leather confirmed that.

Laun blinked into the fire and grimaced.  She would have to milk herself.  Like one of the cows they had at Salam-Dir.  She had done her stint with the dairy, being able to get half a bucket of the cow milk on her best try as the cow had tried to kick her, repeatedly.  She sneered at herself, the thought of a milking stool and bucket under her swaying breasts making her laugh at herself inside, the humor not reaching the surface.

The faces of the people around her were not really grim, but they were not very expressive.  Everyone was tired, and she knew that the morning was still weighing heavily on most.  It was not the crowd she could just pull her tunic up and start expressing milk.

Laun had a bowl that Gem had handed to her, some dried fruits and such in it.  She looked at it and nodded to herself.  She did not look up, but said, “Excuse me for a moment.  I will be back.”  She stood, taking the bowl with her.

She did not see the eyes that followed her into the darkness.  They stayed on her back as she sat beyond the saddle and could see she was pulling on her clothing.  Laun did not see the ill covered flash of desire from Erin when he heard the slightly wet sounds of Laun’s milk being pushed from her nipple and into the bowl.  She did not see Dougal and Klemner turn away, for their own reasons.  She did not hear the low murmur between Silar and Evan as they tried to figure out what she was doing, until Gem poked one of them and made it clear.  Laun did not know that Edgar almost stood to go to her, until Fount put a hand on him and shook his head.  She didn’t know.

It took about twenty minutes for Laun to be able to get enough milk from herself that the pressure was bearable, but then she felt how she had pressed too hard in places, feeling a bruising deep in her breasts.  It was a different pain, and one she knew she would deal with.  She had followed the hard lines she felt under her skin that went to her nipple, her left breast giving more than her right.  It did not fill the bowl, but it was enough that the dried fruit was no longer dry when she came back to the fire.

Several quips died before they were said.  Laun looked around and saw that people were looking at her as she ate and drank from her bowl.  She felt a flush of embarrassment, but said, “What?  Didn’t know you had the royal cow along?” to cover her feelings.

Hunter snorted and then laughed.  It had broken some of the ice between Laun and the men, many more of them joining in on the laughter.  Laun continued to eat, soaking her travel cake in her own milk to soften it.

There was some talk, of the roads ahead, of the troop movements.  Laun was not the first to beg leave of the fire, but she soon followed after the watch for the night was set.  She was to be woken when the moon was straight above, and then Silar about two hours later as the draw was done.

Laun found the blanket that had been under her saddle on the bushes, only a slight moistness to the touch.  It smelled strongly of the horse though, and Laun had to get used to it as she drew the blanket around her shoulders.  She listened to the low talk around the fire, tones coming to her but not words.  The insect noises were getting loud and Laun pulled the blanket further up on her head when she felt flies starting to land on her face.  She would rather smell the horse than get bitten by the horse flies.

Sleep came, not as steady or deep as Laun might have wanted, but she did rest as her head lay on the saddle.  Her dreams were nonsensical, situations that she would never be in, wearing clothing that seemed reasonable and usual in the dream, but as she came back up out of sleep, she wondered what made her mind think that wearing fruit tied together with fishing line and netting was acceptable in any way.

A small snap of a twig and Laun was fully awake.  It is what woke her and the sounds of the horses became loud.  Laun tried to roll over, sit up to see what was going on when she felt a knee land in her side.

A hand was on her throat, another pulling the blanket from her shoulders.  “I have a woman here!”  Laun relaxed as she heard three voices answer, none of them familiar.  She was rolled to her back, the man staying on top of her.  She raised her arms above her head to either side of the saddle, turning her head slightly away from the man on top of her.

“That’s a good girl.  Feels like you are a looker.  Too bad no one will be looking for you after tonight.”  He pulled on her leathers, finding the buckles for her riding pants and working on releasing them.

Laun could hear the others being rounded up, Gem being pulled out for one of the other bandits.  She heard a few low clicks, everyone was still there, no one had been taking a pee or something when the men with swords and knives had surprised them.

Laun could not speak, but she made a gasp and then clicked her tongue.  She heard both Grace and Thunder react, but they had been securely tethered.  It was going to take effort for them to get out of the line, if they could at all.

Laun saw red and felt pain in her cheek as the man on top of her slapped her.  “No noise from you, bitch.”  He had unbuckled the pants and had pulled up her tunic.  His hand not holding her throat grabbed her breast and squeezed hard.  Laun squirmed, trying not to call out.

She could hear Gem, the man with her being even rougher.  He was going for screams in the night and Laun knew Gem’s screams.  She was not holding back her voice and the bandits knew no one was around to hear.

“Move your ass.”  He was pulling her pants down, but the tightness of them was making it difficult to move them on her skin.  She had thought of just staying still, but he was in a position of power and could strangle her at any time.  Laun lifted her butt off the ground slightly and her pants were down, her boots keeping them from coming off completely.

His tunic was up and he was ready to force his way into her.  Laun held her knees together for a moment, trying to give him a show of resistance.  His hand grabbed her knee and pulled her legs apart, forcing himself between her legs and keeping her legs down with his own ankles on her pants.  He used his hand to find her womanhood, made a swipe to find the lips and pushed himself into her.  It was dry and Laun could not help moving because of the pain.

“That’s right, bitch, move your ass for me.”  Laun could smell ale on his breath, a bad tooth souring every word he spat at her.  His hand went from her neck to the ground  for better leverage, his other hand squeezing her breast painfully.

Laun gasped and moaned, her head still turned away from the bandit.  She heard several of the men in her escort start to speak, but the bandits had them too well under the sword.  Laun moved her hips and felt the man in her react, liking what he felt.  His breathing became ragged as he sped up his thrusts.

Laun moaned again and let out a soft, “Yes!”  She moved her arms down from above her head and put them on his arms, pulling him to her.

“This one likes it!  Come on bitch, I’m only the first.”  Laun could feel that he was close to peaking, his thrusts getting deeper and uneven in rhythm.

Laun turned her head and could see some of his face in the low light.  His mouth was on hers and Laun felt like throwing up with the taste and smell of him in her.  She gave back some tongue and felt his pulse in his manhood.  His head went back and he bellowed as he came to his peak in her.  Laun moved her hands and the bellow quieted, a thick, wet sound replacing it.

“Get off her Tindus!  My turn!”  The other bandit grabbed the spent bandits’ shoulder, rolling a limp man off of Laun.

Laun could not move well with her pants down around her ankles, but her knives could.  One struck the stooped man in the throat, the strangled cry being echoed by the horses on the line.  He tried to move back, but the lifeblood coming out of his throat drained his energy and he was on his knees and on the ground, a pool of his own blood soaking into the dirt.

Gem took the advantage of Laun’s attack to get some back from the bandit who had been pounding her with his fists.  She struck him in several places rapidly, making him double over and she struck him in the side of the head with her booted foot, his body landing heavily.  Gem did not delay and crushed the man’s throat with her knee.

There was just one bandit left.  He had a sword and a dagger, but it was nothing compared to the venom he saw in the faces of the men he had been left guarding.  He tried to back away, to run, but he found that Gem tackled him from the side and he was down on the ground, disarmed and surrounded by the people he was supposed to be robbing and killing.

Laun was on her feet, her breeches up and being fastened.  She stooped down and pulled one of her boot daggers, hitting the cheeks of the two men she had just killed with the pommel.  Gem knew that action and did the same to her kill with her own assassin’s dagger.

The bandit also knew the action.  He started to try to crawl away on his back, legs stopping him.  He pissed in his breeches and groaned as everyone could smell it.

Laun licked her lips and smiled at the man on the ground.  Blood dripped from her face, the firelight and moonlight making it even more grotesque than it was.  She knelt by the man and put her knife at his throat.

“Who are you?”

“No!  Please!  Don’t kill me!”  His mind was panicked and he was not hearing the calm tones of the woman over him.

Laun backhanded him with the hand holding the assassin’s dagger.  She grabbed the front of his tunic, lifting him up slightly.  His eyes were somewhat unfocused, but he was quiet and was looking only at Laun.  “Who.  Are.  You?”

He gulped air several times.  His voice quivered as he said, “Kalster Windom.”

“Where are you from?”  Laun let his tunic go and he fell to the dirt, his head bouncing off the hard ground.

“Ah!  No where!  Please!  Let me go!  I won’t tell anyone about this!”

Laun’s head tilted and she smiled.  Her teeth were smeared with blood that made them seem wickedly pointed.  “Negotiating with an assassin?  Do you know of anyone who survives to tell of such?”

“Nonononononono.”  His head was turning back and forth, but his eyes were still on her.  He started to try to crawl away again only stopping when Laun hit him in the chest with the pommel of the dagger.  It was hard enough that everyone could hear bone crack when she hit.  He gasped for air and tried to roll into a ball around his broken sternum.

Laun held him by the throat, feeling the rapid pulse under her fingers and thumb.  “Kalster!  Tell me where you come from!”

He was still shaking his head from side to side.  Laun tightened her grip on him and he stopped moving.  His gasps were coming out in sobs now and he started to nod his head.  “I’m from Rosemond.  First Division Regulars.”

A swift boot to his side and more bones cracked.  “Fucker!  Rosemond military?  How dare you turn to rape and banditry!”  Erin stumbled sideways as he tried to strike out at the man again, Klemner steadying him so he could make the arc.

He was crying between coughs.  Laun felt a small spray from the man’s mouth and saw dark spots along his lips.  “Were you ordered to do this?”  He nodded, not being able to speak through the pain.  “What superior ordered this?”

He shook his head.  He was not going to say, not even to save his own life.  Laun punched him again on the chest and he screamed.

“Mistress, may I kill him for you?”

Laun turned to Evan and smiled.  She put her knife back in it’s boot holster, the bandit seeing the multiple jewels on the handle.  Laun stood and stepped away, looking at the man writhing in pain, screaming when he could.

“More information, first.  Strip him and tie him.”

The man tried to struggle, but every time he did, either his captors would strike him hard, causing more pain than he ever thought he would endure, or his body would fail him and the pain from his own struggle would stop him for a moment.  Laun felt the bloodlust flowing through her, the taste of blood, the smell of blood and the pain she had caused heating her to her core.

He was naked and pulled to the light of the stoked fire, the scrape in the grass and dirt obvious even in the moonlight.  Laun rolled him with her foot until he was face down, his wrists tightly bound to a rope that also held his ankles together.  Laun sat on him, the rope tightening and pulling at his arms, a scream coming out of him as bones crushed and broken moved in ways they were not supposed to.

Laun pointed generally at Gem.  “Maker’s marks?”

The blonde was looking at the clothing of the man in the firelight.  “One from the Capitol City, lower end.  The boots are Rosemond issue, his name and rank right here.  He is a sergeant.”

“A little young to be at that rank, don’t you think?”

Erin spoke, an edge to his voice.  “We have had to get men from all walks of life, and the officers are hardest to keep.”

“That is a shame.  Anything else?”

Gem shook her head.  “I will keep looking Mistress.”

Laun’s fingers could get some of his hair to grab.  It was a little longer than standard helmet length, the stubble on his chin showing that he had stopped shaving only a few weeks ago, if that.  “Sergeant.  Unless you robbed someone for his boots and took his name at the same time, you are Sergeant Kalster Windom.  I bet your family is so proud of you, going off to the Midlands to take it for your homeland.”  Laun dropped his head and he moaned into the dirt.

Hunter and Fount came back into the firelight.  “Four horses, two with military saddles.  It looks like they have been doing this for a while, but not well.  Only a few Midlands coins in a pouch in one saddlebag, a few Rosemond plate and a few pieces of jewelry.”

“Tie them to the line.  We can always use more horses.”  Laun bounced slightly on her living seat and smiled when he groaned.

“You are having quite a bit of fun there... Mistress.  May I do some interrogation?”  Verat’s voice was calm but Laun heard a little enthusiasm.  She heard that he had almost used her name or another title and she respected that he changed in mid stride.

Laun stood, keeping a foot on the man’s back.  “If you wish.  He is already broken, so don’t be worried about damaging him further.”

The man gasped and started to say, “nononononono,” as Verat sat by the bandits head, pulling it up so he could see the man’s face.

Verat’s hand went under the bandit’s chin, supporting the weight of the man’s head.  He stroked down along the whiskered cheek and looked into the pained eyes looking back at him.  “Our Mistress has been kind to you to let you stay alive this long.  I know you hurt, but as it is said, while you live, you have hope.”

Laun watched.  She wanted to learn from someone who had been taught by an actual Master in the information gatherers.  She knelt next to the man, not touching as she kept her eyes going from interrogator to prisoner.  His voice was calm and calming. She was not sure if it was having an effect that soon, but it made Laun trust in Verats skills.

“Hope.  It is such a fleeting thing, you know.  What do you hope to get by not telling us who gave you the orders?  You cannot hope for your life, it belongs to our Mistress.”

Laun saw the bandit’s eyes close, tears starting to come from them.  Verat gently put the man’s chin back down on the ground and sat back.  The prisoner’s eyes were facing the fire, blinding him when he blinked them open.

“Mistress, he is military trained.  I do not think he will be telling us any more.”

Laun slowly pulled out one of the boot knives, the sound making the man bound next to her shut his eyes tight and cringe, a gasp for air the only sound from him.  “Then, he is not worth any thing to us.”  She placed the knife on his exposed neck, the cold blade making him jump.

“nonononononoNONONONOOOO!  Lady Engrid!  There are four other groups like us!  We are to terrorize the Midlands and keep people from moving around and talking to each other.  Please!  That is all I know!”  Blood and spittle flew from his mouth as he tried to yell his words.

Laun drew the knife along his neck, drawing only a little blood.  “Now, wasn’t that easier?”  Laun replaced the knife in her boot and stroked the man on the head, his sobbing and crying sounding like a hurt animal in a trap.

Edgar moved around the fire and to Laun.  He put his hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him.  He motioned with is head and Laun stood and followed him into the darkness.

“Laun, we can’t stay here.  We need to pack and go.”

Laun nodded.  “Now that we have more information, we can.”  Laun looked at the trembling man by the fire.  “Do we kill him?”

“We have to.  He has seen us.  He knows who we are.”

Laun shook her head.  “No.  No one has said a name within earshot.  I am the only one who has been identified.  And that by Mistress.”  Laun paused.  She looked back to Edgar and tilted her head.

“What are you thinking, My Lady?”

“I am thinking that I am about to make another title for myself.  Hels gate, what I do for my Kingdom.”  Laun smiled before turning back to the fire.

Verat was motioned away from the prisoner.  Silar saw Laun’s hands and motioned to the other two assassins and they also went from the light into the dark.

Quietly Laun asked, “What are the known Masters of the Assassin’s guild?”

Many were named.  Most, Laun had already heard of.  She smiled as they came to the end of their tired memories.  She nodded and walked back to the fire.  She sat on the prisoner again and smiled widely at the noises he made.

“I just convinced my apprentice to not ass fuck you.”  She felt a shiver go through the man, his ass cheeks clenching under her.  “He has a tendency to leave a bloody mess behind.”

“Th.. Thank you... Mistress...”

Laun laughed.  It was not a kind laugh.  “Be careful who you call Mistress, Sergeant.  You should at least know who you are calling Mistress.”  She leaned on him, feeling another rib break under her weight.  She took his head off the ground by the short hairs she could grab onto and leaned very close to his face.  “I am Peach.  Mistress Peach.  I have marked you with my blade in two ways.  I give you your life, what there is left of it, to think about what you have done.  Repent your ways to the false leader you have taken orders from.  Clear your soul of the evil you have done, and were going to do.  Then, and maybe then, you could be allowed to call me Mistress.”  His face hit the ground and he sobbed.

Laun got up and looked around at the people around her.  She shrugged.  “We have a meeting with Blue Master.  Mount up.”

It took a little while to gather everything, but the area was cleared, leaving little sign that there had been anyone but the three dead and one alive man around the fire.  Laun could still hear the bandit’s moans and gasps for air as they rode away.

The next morning, more of the bandit Rosemond military rode by, checking the area they had created as a trap, finding their squad mates.  The Sergeant was still alive, though far into shock.  He was rolled and the men backed off when they saw the impression on his chest.  A Raven with a Sword under a Crown.

The sergeant mumbled and gasped for air.  Before he went under again, they could catch, “...Mistress Peach...”

 

Chapter 34 Concludes the trip to the Capitol City, but the doors that open are not all noble.