Hisydran & Y'Sor in the Cavern

Two armies gathered on what was a wheat field, neither side had really wanted to fight here, but flanks needed to be covered. On one side, a mercenary company, humans. On the other, skirmisher's from the claimant's army. On one side, a company standard flew in the wind: crimson, yellow, and an azure sword. On the other, the heraldry of the Royal Family of Ch'Tern'K.

This particular kingdom was a kingdom of people infused with elemental spirits. The element they are infused with is a rite of passage among their culture, being done when becoming a true adult. This infusion often caused many physical changes in the person.

None of this mattered as the two sides cautiously approached each other, trying to corral each other into a worse position, but nowhere in the field was better than the other. The tall wheat was chest high to one man: Hisydran. His short brown beard peaked out from under his sallet as he gripped his partisan. A frustrated sergeant shouted something and his formation moved forward. The other side also moved forward. Hisydran's formation stopped moving just in time for the lines to meet.

Y'Sor held onto her sword tightly. It was a relic that had been in her family for a few generations. She didn't want to use it, but here she was. She gripped it as she swung against the spears, the blade humming as it cleft cleanly through the wooden hafts of the enemy's weapons. There were confused yelps and gasps from the mercenaries as Y'Sor's allies moved in behind her, spears piercing through the first line. When spears pushed back through, Y'Sor stopped to use her meager healing abilities to triage her allies as the rest of the formation advanced.

The two formations pushed against each other from the morning to when the sun was highest, the mercenaries making slightly more gains as they were a more disciplined fighting force. Eventually, Hisydran found himself looking down a cut spear as Y'Sor stepped toward him. Suddenly, the ground trembled. Hisydran ducked, and ducked, and was suddenly looking up at his opponent. Y'Sor swung her sword at the man in front of her, downward to just knock him out. Her sword swung down, and down, and down, until she was looking down, but straight forward at the man.

A great chasm had opened beneath the fighting, swallowing most of the field and everyone in it. Only the outermost flanks were spared, and they quickly fled back to their camps. The farmer was especially upset. Chunks of rock and stone and dirt fell far down, some still had fights on them, interspersed with people in freefall.

Fortunately, for some, this cavern had a lake at the bottom. Unfortunately, Hisydran didn't know how to swim. Weapons, rocks and people plunged into the lake. Hisydran splashed in panic as the weight of his armor counteracted any attempt to swim. A hand grabbed him and pulled him onto a rock with surprising strength. It was Y'Sor. In a blind panic, Hisydran pulled out his seax, the blade almost as long as his forearm, and pointed it at Y'Sor. Y'Sor spit out another mouthful of mud and grabbed her sword from behind her, spinning in one motion and slapping the knife out of his hand and into the water, trimming the bottom of his beard in the process. She held the sword up before Hisydran kicked her in the gut, she threw the pommel into his chest. He groaned and tried to sweep her leg, taking the opportunity to draw his boot knife. She hopped over it, punched his arm which made him drop his knife, and grabbed the rim of his helmet. In one swift motion, with a surprising amount of strength, she plunged him into the water. Only for a moment as a burst of bubbles came up around his head.

"STOP" Y'Sor cried, "FIGHTING" she pulled his head up when she spoke and dunked it between words. It seemed to be enough, and Hisydran stopped flailing, and tapped her hand several times. She pulled him up and hurled him onto his back, sputtering water from his mouth. Immediately, Y'Sor was upon him, her sword gently slicing through his beard without touching his neck. Hisydran's purple eyes shot through his visor in fear at Y'Sor's yellow eyes.

"SURRENDER." Y'Sor said, her voice's echo lost in the chamber.

"I submit!" Hisydran said. There was a moment of silence, punctuated by the splashing of rocks.

"Good. I hate fighting." Y'Sor said.

"Strange talk for a soldier." Hisydran replied.

"I'm not a soldier, you are." Y'Sor said

"I-- I hate fighting too." Hisydran confessed

"Strange talk for a mercenary." Y'sor shot back. Hisydran said nothing in return, his eyes tracing the pooling water that ran off him. Hisydran sat up against the rock.

"Thanks for saving me... I can't swim." Hisydran said. Eyes cast down at the choppy water. The cavern had gone silent for the most part now. Looking up, he could barely make out anything above him, the opening letting in enough light to fully illuminate the rubble island they were on and blinding him from seeing out in the noon sun. Y'Sor didn't say anything for a while, then got up and left. Hisydran closed his eyes.

"Looks like you're stuck here." Y'Sor spoke, returning to where he lay

"I'm stuck?" Hisydran asked, jolting awake. His hands instinctively grabbed for his boot knife, which was gone now.

"Yea, this is all rubble from above. Can't get very far without hitting water twice taller than you are." Y'Sor sat across from him.

"And you came back to tell me?" Hisydran asked, taking in Y'Sor. She was taller than him, and she was beautiful. He found himself enamored by her citrine eyes and stout legs. Though the rest of her was just as captivating.

"I saved your life, remember, so for now, you owe me." Y'Sor said, "So try not to stare too much. And, I can't see a way up from here. Wanted to let you know before I swam to shore." Y'Sor replied, leaping into the water and deftly swimming away.

"Wait!" Hisydran said, too late for Y'Sor to hear him. He scowled at the water before standing and wandering around the island. He sighed, "I've done it this time. I couldn't stand to be an apprentice back home. Had to go into the city to become a tutor, try to be a scientist. Then you go and get drunk after trying to get some dates, and what? You get picked up and sign a contract with some mercenary company fighting a war. Now, you're here." He kicked a rock, scuffing the sabaton over his boot, a tinge of anxiety ran through him from the two months of express training he went through. "Stuck on this rock," He took both sabatons off, "Stuck in this cavern" he threw them as hard as he could. They landed with two plunks and sank quickly. "And going to die slowly and painfully on these rocks." He walked a little further over the rough terrain and found himself back where he began. He stared at the water again. So many of his friends could swim, but not him. "And that woman has condemned me to death here." Y'Sor was right, he had spoken strangely for a mercenary. He sat down and wept for some time, unsure what to do or what to try to do.

"Good, you're still here. Do you know how to cook?" Y'Sor surged up suddenly from the water, again startling Hisydran.

"You came back?" Hisydran said, face now red.

"Well, I can't get out, and I didn't like the idea of abandoning you here while you owe me." Y'Sor said, plopping down a few fish and some wood. She waved her hand and made some gestures, and the water that had soaked into it while she swam seemed to all sweat out of it. Hisydran looked at the fish and the wood.

"I can cook." he said, "Can you start a fire?"

"No," Y'Sor replied, standing up over him. "But, I found this pack on one of your friends." Y'Sor dropped a pack from her shoulder.

"A survival pack." Hisydran said, "I had left mine at camp, didn't think I'd need it." Hisydran said as he fished out a tinder box. " I, uh, need to use a knife to make some kindling."

"No, I'll make it." Y'Sor said, picking up her sword. It hummed lightly as she shed off strips of wood for kindling. Hisydran noticed she seemed to be more focused on making shallow cuts than pushing the blade through the wood. He took the kindling and quickly made a fire. "What's your name?"

"Uh, Hisydran. But just 'Dran" will do, if you want. We also need to clean these fish, I can do it if you'll let me use a knife." Hisydran said.

"Well, Hisedrin," Y'Sor tried to pronounce his name, "Hysdran. Hisidrin. Dran. Well Dran, I don't know how to clean a fish, so go ahead." Y'Sor pulled a small knife from a pouch on her belt and handed it to him. "Removed it before you even saw the bag."

"I see," Dran said, starting to clean the fish, "Well, seeing as you're now my master, what should I call you?"

"Y'Sor is fine."

"Y'Sor is a fine name... It's Ch'Tekdan, isn't it?"

"It is, how did you know?"

"I used to study many things, before I was a mercenary; are you part of the ones that get infused with magic when you become adults?"

"You know an awful lot, yes."

"I found it fascinating. Magic is very rare in my land, so having it so mundane as to have all adults be infused? I wanted to learn all I could, which led me to learning and studying all sorts of things." Dran elaborated as he skewered fish and started roasting them. "What type of magic are you infused with?"

"Well," Y'Sor said, "It's not just 'magic' we are infused with elemental forces, though I am part of a group that have been trying to refine this so we can go beyond just the classical elements." Y'Sor happily explained, "For instance, to answer your question, I am infused with a spirit of Life." Dran raised his eyebrows

"My favorite part of being a scholar is that there is always more to learn." He said, "Or, at least, when I was a scholar." He rolled the roasting fish, making sure it was evenly cooked

"Maybe you can be one again someday." Y'Sor said. Looking at him thoughtfully.

"If I ever get out of here." Dran replied, handing her the skewer he had been cooking, and then started cooking on one for himself. He chuckled a little and shook his head.

"I think getting off this cluster of rock will be the hard part, looked like a lot of tunnels and caves all over this cavern." Y'Sor paused, "And some looked even artificial." Y'Sor continued, almost as if goading him into wanting to leave.

"Yes, but I can't swim, so unless you carry me to shore, I'm stuck here." Dran looked over at the lake for a moment.

"I could carry you." Y'Sor said, part of my Life infusion is that I can temporarily change things about bodies, or heal them." Y'Sor said, flexing her arms before making a series of gestures with her hands. Suddenly, the muscles of her arms grew to thrice their size, before gradually returning to their previous size. Dran was speechless. "During the battle, I was using my powers to triage the wounded. Mostly closing wounds, as I didn't have the time or ability there to stop internal wounds or mend bones."

"You're truly a wonder, Y'Sor." Dran said, starting to eat his own food after removing his helmet and gorget. He looked back over at the discarded heads of the fish. "You notice something about these fish?"

"What? They're fish?" Y'Sor replied, looking at them.

"They have eyes." Dran said, "Which means they come from somewhere there is light, as cave fish have no eyes."

"So, there must be a way for them to traverse to the surface!" Y'Sor replied excitedly

"Exactly! So we could possibly follow their path, assuming it's big enough."

"I think given the size of this cavern, and the lake, that there must be at least one waterway large enough. Though I think the bigger problem would be getting you through the water." Y'Sor chewed a bite of fish, "Since you can't swim"

"Well, maybe you can use your magic to drag me along behind you." Dran suggested.

"Perhaps." Y'Sor replied, finishing her fish. "You get a cute look on your face when you're postulating like that."

"Heh, it might not be right to... flirt with your prisoner." Dran said, his face flushing red slightly. "Though, you get a similarly cute look when you talk about your infusion."

"I suppose I can allow you to flirt with me." Y'Sor blushed slightly, "Though I don't think it'll get you better treatment." Y'Sor winked. Dran blushed a little more.

"I believe I'm already getting the best treatment I can." Dran replied, setting aside his empty skewer. "But, what after we get out?"

"I suppose, if my side won the battle, you shall remain my prisoner." Y'Sor said, standing and looking over the span from the island to the shore. "And if your side won, I can be your prisoner."

"An interesting thought." Dran said, "But I think your side won. No way my company would stay after the field collapsed."

"Then it's settled, you'll remain my prisoner. Let's get moving." Y'Sor grinned and held out her hand as her body flexed with new muscles. Dran put his helmet back on and took her hand. She handily slung him onto her beck and leapt into the water. Dran guessed she might have skipped half the swim, and within a few strokes they were on the opposite shore. She walked up on the shore and Dran dropped off her back as she returned to her normal size.

"That wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. Thought you would be struggling to hold me up. Though, I doubt you'll be able to carry me like that out of here." Dran chuckled.

"I think your skepticism is not based on any evidence." Y'Sor replied

"Now you're just trying to flirt with me." Dran averted his gaze and rang water out of his beard.

"More baseless accusations." Y'Sor smirked, out of his view. She looked around where they stood. "None of these caves look promising."

"That's because there isn't water flowing out of any of them." Dran remarked scanning the far side of the cavern. He spied a short, wide opening with shallow water flowing out of it. "That is our exit, probably." Dran started walking, then stopped and looked back at Y'Sor, who quickly strode ahead of him. He resumed walking along behind her. She stopped, and then Dran stopped.

"Shouldn't you be ahead? I do have to keep an eye on you as my prisoner." Y'Sor said, waving her head to gesture Dran ahead of her.

"Of course." he replied, doing as instructed. The two reached the cave opening, Dran went right inside, his hamlet only rarely scraping the ceiling. Y'Sor had to stoop to enter the short space. "It seems being smaller has finally come in handy for once." Dran commented as they splashed along in the swift but shallow water. The hobnails on Drans boots made gaining traction a bit difficult, he found himself struggling to make forward progress.

"Those boots doing you any favors?" Y'Sor called to him. She had ditched her shoes and had modified her feet to better grip the smooth, wet stone and was stood right behind Dran.

"Can't say they are, but I don't know if my feet would do any better." Dran said, narrowly preventing himself from falling. Y'Sor grabbed his arm to steady him. "I am making progress on my own."

"Barely." Y'Sor replied, "Just let me help you a little so this doesn't take forever." Dran consented and the two made quicker progress along the tunnel.

After several hours of slogging along, the two came to an opening along the river.

"Can we take a rest? This has been exhausting." Dran asked

"Yes, let's take a break." Y'Sor agreed. The two slumped down on the hard dry stone and caught their breath. Dran stripped his boots and socks off.

"We still have the fire making supplies?" Dran asked, eager to dry off and warm up. Y'Sor nodded, handing him the pack. He shredded off some kindling and got a small fire going. It wasn't much, but was enough to ensure the two of them were able to get mostly dry. At least dry enough. Dran sat against the wall while Y'Sor laid next to the fire, he held his arms crossed over his chest, staring at the rushing water, his mind running at the same pace about what might happen once they escape the cave. Y'Sor seemed nice, she hadn't beaten him more than necessary, and she had flirted with him. He shook his head, glancing over at her, a silhouette against the dim embers of the fire. He wondered why she had done all she had for him. "What do you want?" he said to himself under his breath.

"I just want to go home, from this war, from all this killing." Y'Sor said, rolling over, her silhouette highlighted by the glow of the embers, "To go back to my friends, my life before this, to the calm." she continued, "Do you want peace? Or are you taking advantage of my peace to return to killing?"

"No." Hisydran replied, curled up against the wall, he was still afraid of Y'Sor on a level. "No, I... I want peace. I want to go back to my studies, I want to return to- I don't want to return to my old home, I want to go somewhere I can call home. I don't want to fight, but I couldn't control where I was going." Hisydran said, looking down from Y'Sor's eyes, arms tight around his knees.

"If we get out of this cave, I can help you have that life you want." Y'Sor said, drawing close to him, "We can return to my home, after that, you can study or leave for a new home, or even stay with me, if you so desire." Y'Sor's words trailed off slowly as she spoke, almost a whisper by the end.

"Do you want me to stay with you?" Hisydran looked up to her eyes, at least, their glint in the darkness. His teeth clenched and his arm tensed.

"Yes." Y'Sor replied, "There is a certain honesty to what you say, and a desperate tension when you speak of returning." she elaborated. "Even now, I want to comfort you, to let you know that I am earnest in my desire to see you freed of your life of violence."

"I... would like to be comforted." Hisydran said, relaxing from his tension.

"Then join me by the remains of the fire, we can both be warm, if just for a little while." Y'Sor said, sitting back and rubbing her hand on the smooth ground next to her. Hisydran slowly crawled over, still apprehensive about the situation. He sat next to her and she put her arm around him. It was immediately comforting, he felt another wave of tension ease out of his body, one he hadn't been aware of before. "Feeling comforted yet?" Y'Sor asked. Hisydran nodded, leaning into her. Y'Sor turned her chest slightly to allow his head to lay on her, and gently touched his hair. She pulled her hand away for a moment.

"It's fine, please." Hisydran said softly, and Y'Sor's fingers intertwined with his hair, gently massaging his scalp. Hisydran let out a low, content moan and fully relaxed into her embrace, smiling to himself. He felt the elation of her touch throughout his body. "Are you doing something to me, with your Life magic?" Hisydran asked

"No, if you feel something, it is just from my touch. Are you enjoying it?" Y'Sor replied with a smirk. She reached across herself and placed her other hand on Hisydran's chest.

"I am enjoying it, very much." Hisydran leaned in closer to Y'Sor's face. Y'Sor leaned closer to him. Both closed their eyes and shared a kiss. They pulled away for a moment, then kissed again. Hisydran put his arms around Y'Sor, pulling her close. Their breathes were deep and desperate and their mouths remained in contact. Their hands trace all over each other. Hisydran pulled away. "I want you, here, now." he said.

"I want you too, let's do it." Y'Sor replied quickly. The dark only made removing clothes slightly harder. Hisydran had barely gotten his pants to ankles when Y'Sor pulled him back to her with a yelp. They resumed kissing for only a moment.

"I want to fuck you." Hisydran moaned into her ear

"I want you to fuck me." Y'Sor replied, her strong hands moved down to Hisydran's erect cock and guided him into her. Once inside her, they resumed making out while he moved his hips back and forth slowly, then faster. He his face and nestled against her neck, gently nibbling between thrusts. As they went on, Hisydran slowed down slightly and Y'Sor suddenly spoke up.

"Yes! There! Like that! Like that!" she called out. Hisydran paused for a moment, then resumed like he had been doing. The passion in her voice and consistent movement was making Hisydran start to pant as well. "In me, be in me! Finish in me!" Y'Sor commanded, and Hisydran obeyed. He suddenly tensed and leaned down onto her, grunting feverishly as her powerful legs clamped around him. The two twitched together in the darkness for a while, before catching their breath.

"You felt amazing. Feel amazing." Hisydran said, starting to move away.

"You feel amazing as well, and don't think you need to leave. Lets stay together

and keep warm while we rest." Y'Sor said, grabbing what articles of clothing she could reach and drafting them over the both of them as Hisydran nestled down against her. Their breathing slowed until both slumbered peacefully beside the flow stream.

Y'Sor woke first, momentarily forgetting all that had transpired until her fingers caressed Hisydran's back. She smiled and nudged him gently. He stirred after a moment and started to get up. She softly pulled on his beard and guided his face to hers to exchange a quick kiss.

"Good Morning." Y'Sor said.

"Is it morning? Far too dark to tell." Hisydran replied back, hugging her before getting up.

"Either way, as comfortable as you are to hold, the ground is not forgiving." Y'Sor groaned as Hisydran climbed off her, pulling on his clothes after helping her up. Y'Sor flexed her back, a chorus of cracks and pops echoed against the wall and were lost against the river.

"If you're ready, shall we continue?" Hisydran said, meekly feeling about in the dark toward the river.. Y'Sor took his hand and the two ambled their way up stream. The two would stumble from time to time, and giggle as they steadied each other.. After much time fumbling and splashing in the dark, the river began to become rather than fully dark, just dim. They excitedly hurried as the light grew brighter until they were stunned after turning a corner as sunlight poured into the mouth of the cave. Y'Sor recovered first and pulled Hisydran along to the outside.

"Finally, freedom." Hisydran said, thankful that his helmet shaded his eyes from most of the harsh morning light.

"Not freedom yet, you're still my prisoner until we talk to my commander." Y'Sor's eyes quickly adjusted back to the light and she looked around, seeing her ally's encampment on a far hill. "It also seems you were right, unless we've moved far away, no sign of your company."

"You will keep your word? A new life, free to go and do as I choose?" Hisydran asked.

"Of course, I want to see that cute face of yours telling me all about what you've learned." Y'Sor stepped closer to him.

"You spoil me." Hisydran said, facing her but averting his eyes. Y'Sor gently tugged on his beard and pointed his face to hers.

"You deserve it, no scholar should be forced to fight." Y'Sor leaned in close to his face, "If you would like to spoil me, for a moment."

"I would." Hisydran replied, throwing off his helmet and meeting her lips. The two breathed heavily for a moment as they held the kiss. Hisydran placed a hand on her waist, she leaned into him. Suddenly, she pulled away.

"Don't spoil me too much, yet." Y'Sor said.

"Of course, ma'am." Dran caught his breath and put his helmet back on. The two smiled at each other and started the hike to the camp. Upon reaching it, several soldiers recognized Hisydran and sought to have the guards seize them. Y'Sor, of course, stopped them and explained that Hisydran was her prisoner. The guards took them both to the camp commander.

"We thought you were dead, Y'Sor." the commander said, standing in their tent, facing the two of them.

"I may well could've been." Y'Sor replied, standing at attention

"And I see you have a new friend."

"Yes, this is my prisoner. His name is, uh, Dran." Y'Sor stated. The commander strode over to Hisydran and scowled at him. Hisydran looked straight ahead, not saying anything.

"Very well, do you need time to wait to return to duty?" the commander asked.

"I can't." Y'Sor said, Dran looked up at her.

"Why not?" the commander asked, looking Y'Sor up and down.

"I'm with child." Y'Sor said with the utmost confidence. The commander and Dran both looked at her with wide eyes.

"You are?" Hisydran asked

"Whose?" the commander asked. Y'Sor took Hisydran's hand.

"His." she said, almost as if defiantly. Dran's heart raced, pounding in his helmet, chest fluttering in his cuirass. Then, the commander spoke.

"Very well, you have leave to return home. Both of you." they said, sitting down at their desk and starting to fill out a report. Dran was frozen in place, but Y'Sor gently tugged on his hand as she walked away and he dutifully followed.

"Are you? From last night? How can you-" Hisydran asked quietly and quickly.

"Being attuned with Life magic gives me insight to certain things." Y'Sor blushed deeply, pausing to go collect her things from the quartermaster. She returned with a couple bags of things. Hisydran took one of the bags, "And I hope this doesn't make you feel like you're forced to stay with me." Y'Sor lamented for but a moment.

"I would stay with you, even without this." Hisydran said, gently placing his hand over Y'Sor's lower stomach, making her smile widely and blush deeply. The two exchanged a short kiss, and left the camp, headed for home.