Reckoning

My life is over, Julian thought. Completely and irrevocably over.

He swallowed nervously, wishing he could be anywhere else. Then Izel shifted against him, her big breast brushing against his arm. She was so warm and soft, a major contrast to her personality and ferociousness in combat. Despite his situation, he was grateful to have her with him.

I couldn’t ask for a better consort.

The gem at the tip of his mother’s staff glowed briefly, and the door to his room shut seemingly of its own accord.

His mother stared at him; ocean-blue eyes dark like a churning sea during a storm.

“What were you thinking?” his mother hissed, eyes darting between him and Izel. For a moment, Julian thought he sensed recognition in her gaze.

No, there’s no way Mother actually knows Izel. I cannot be that unlucky.

“I-”

“I specifically told you that you were to remain home until I returned. Instead, you snuck out of the house beneath your sisters’ noses. I’ve no idea how you avoided the house guards, but Captain Ulner will most assuredly be demoted for failing to notice and stop you. Her pay will decrease and her husband and children will have to cope with less food on their table, as well as the shame of her failure,” she said, each sentence biting harder than the last.

Julian frowned as he thought of the captain of House Imerdan’s guards, Brianna Ulner. The dark blond-haired woman with sun-kissed skin had worked for the Imerdans since Julian was a child barely old enough to walk.

Captain Ulner was always fair to me despite the fact that I was classless. It’s not fair that she be punished because of me!

“You can’t do that! Captain Ulner didn’t do anything wrong!” he pleaded.

His mother regarded him pitilessly.

“Oh, but I can. Your father may be head of house, but in his absence, I have the authority to act in his stead. You should have thought of that before you embarrassed her and disobeyed me,” she said flatly. “She is lucky I don’t assign her to the servants’ staff and have her clean the stables. You should be grateful. Were your father here, he would insist on having Ulner publicly flogged in front of her husband and children for her incompetence.”

Izel tensed at his side, and Julian immediately felt a pang of worry for her.

She’s my consort now, and there’s no way my sisters haven’t told Mother about her. That makes her legally part of House Imerdan, and she is now duty-bound to follow the dictates of our head of house. Mother could punish her if she wanted.

His mother’s attention shifted to the woman next to him, as if sensing his thoughts.

“Ah yes. Izel Vidoz. Willing member of the classless movement that seeks to undermine order in this city. And now my son’s consort. What do you have to say for yourself, girl? Have you seduced my son to try to get your hooks into my family and grant your treasonous cause a modicum of legitimacy?”

Beside him, Izel shook her head, her face deadly serious.

“No, my Lady. That was not my intention. You know I would never do anything to put your House in any danger. That would be very deadly for me,” she breathed.

She’s not smiling or making jokes. Good. The only way we survive this is if we look appropriately contrite and throw ourselves at my mother’s mercy.

Maela nodded.

“Yes, it would be,” she remarked coldly. “As it stands, you are lucky the city is not yet aware of your status. Renounce your relationship with Julian now and I will declare your status as his consort null and void. I will allow you to leave without punishment, on the condition that you never attempt to contact my son again.”

Her voice carried a tone of finality, and Julian knew she would brook no disobedience in this matter.

Izel gazed at him, and for the first time he thought he caught a glimpse of worry in her beautiful amber eyes.

“Keep Izel close. Trust no one else.”

The words of the dark man echoed in his mind. He didn’t know if the man was Nethrus, some other entity, or just a figment of his imagination, but he could not ignore them. They felt important, just as Izel was important to him. He couldn’t imagine living the rest of his life without her in it. Her sardonic humor. Her brilliant sense of wit. Her absolutely amazing body and her passion for intimacy.

“My Lady, I-”

“No,” Julian cut her off.

His mother leveled an icy stare at him. He did his best to keep himself composed and his eyes on hers. The robe she wore showed plenty of her expansive cleavage, and it was difficult not to stare.

“I don’t think you realize how precarious your position is, Julian. You’re a member of House Imerdan and you are duty-bound to obey me not just as your mother, but as acting head of house.”

Julian grit his teeth, rage and fear suddenly filling him. Underneath the wool blanket, Izel’s hand found his and she interlaced her fingers with his. The nervousness and fear he felt left him instantly.

“I’d sooner sever all ties with our House than live my life without Izel. I care about her, Mom. Gods, I think I love her. She’s the first thing in my life that’s gone right for me and I won’t allow you to take her away from me. Punish me if you wish. That’s your right. But how would it look to your fellow nobles that you’d punish your son for finding love right after I finally discovered my class? What would the gods think?” he said, not knowing where the words were coming from, but the heat within his chest convinced him of their sheer rightness. “Izel nearly lost her life and I nearly died getting her back. I won’t allow you to take her away from me now. I’m not afraid of you anymore and I no longer need your protection!”

His mother’s staff blazed bright blue and a gust of wind slashed against him, cutting his cheek. The wound stung, and blood trickled down his face. Izel tensed next to him, and for a moment her eyes flashed inky black. He squeezed her hand and shook his head before facing his mother again.

“Do what you want to me. Cut me. Drown me. Freeze me. I’m not giving up Izel. Not ever.”

His mother’s fist gripped her staff so tightly her knuckles turned white.

“You don’t know what you’re saying, Julian,” she said.

Julian met her gaze.

“For the first time in my life, I do. I’m finally classed, Mom. Don’t you know what that means? You won’t have to avoid mentioning me at dinner functions anymore or generally pretending like I don’t exist. And Dad can be happy he finally has a son to carry on his legacy. All of that will go away if you force me to choose Izel over you. You’ll lose.”

His mother stared at him for a long moment, the room’s temperature dropping several degrees. He shivered, but Izel remained unaffected.

Tenlan’s a very cold place. She should be fine.

She moved her body closer to his, pressing herself against him, sharing her warmth. He looked in her eyes and smiled.

I love you.

She swallowed, smiling at him.

“Very well,” his mother said tightly. The temperature in the room immediately warmed. He looked at her again and shivered under the severity of her glare. And suddenly he felt very small. “You may keep your consort, Julian. For now. If she embarrasses me or our House in any way, I will not hesitate to put her to death.”

Rage rippled through him like a shockwave, but he bit his tongue and nodded, grateful for his mother’s sudden acquiescence.

“And you, girl,” Maela began. “You will cease all dealings with the classless organizers. You may have been of some use in helping me root out the perpetrators behind the scenes, but you’ve played your hand well and made yourself useless to me. None of the classless will trust you now that you have bonded yourself to my son.”

Julian whipped his head around to stare at Izel.

“What is she talking about?”

His mother smiled cruelly.

“Oh, you didn’t know? Izel has been working for me for the past few years trying to find the root cause of the classless rioters that have been plaguing the Empire of late. Don’t worry, she wasn’t working for me willingly. I have enough compromising material regarding her nature to ensure her absolute cooperation,” she said.

Julian’s eyes widened.

Mom knows Izel’s a Necromancer. She has to. But if that's the case, why is Izel not dead? Why has she not been imprisoned in Eptium? What does Mother hope to gain by having a Necromancer in her employ?

“But I did not anticipate this. She’s outmaneuvered me, you see, by turning you against me. And you fell for it hook, line, and sinker. I would have warned you about her if I’d known she could be this devious.”

Julian stared at her, feeling secure for the first time since his mother had arrived. He resisted the urge to smile.

She’s trying to turn me against Izel, but she doesn’t know that it was me who started our relationship by using my powers against her. Izel would never have allowed herself to be chained to any man unless she had no other choice in the matter. She values her freedom far too much.

He scooted away from Izel, trying to make it seem like he felt betrayed. Izel stared at him sharply, her eyes widening in disbelief.

Yes, a genuine reaction. Let Mother think there’s trouble in paradise. That way she’ll at least derive some vindictive satisfaction of ruining something for me.

His mother smiled thinly.

“It brings me no pleasure to give you this news, Julian. But it had to be said. Now, as for your punishment, for willfully disobeying my orders and putting your sisters and Clevis Revenar at risk, you will work with the servants cleaning the latrines, floors, and the stables at the manor. During the duration, you will live among the servants as well and have all your usual luxuries denied to you. You will report directly to Ulner, and she will ultimately decide when you’ve developed enough humility to live among civilized people again.”

He nodded.

Live and work among the servants? I’d prefer that over spending a second of my life around you. Thanks, Mother. The only potential problem I can potentially see is Brianna Ulner having power over me. She will likely blame me for her reduction in rank and seek to make life miserable for me. That is what Mother is counting on. I will have to subvert Brianna’s will with my Skills, and quickly. A strong, experienced Barbarian in my thrall would be incredibly useful on top of getting her to let me out of my sentence early. I have four new Skill Points to allocate, and I should do that soon. It's just... with so much going on I haven't had any opportunity to decide what to put my free Skill Points into. Or perhaps that's merely an excuse for me being afraid to commit when I still know so little about what I am.

“Very well, Mother. If that is my punishment, I accept it.”

“Good,” his mother smiled. She lowered her staff and its gem dimmed. She crossed her free arm underneath her breasts, pushing them upward. Her blue eyes gazed at him searchingly. “Velri told me you’re a Hexer. A great many people have negative superstitions regarding dark magic, but our family is not among them. Even your father will see your worth. Once you’ve learned enough humility, he and I might even arrange for a Hexer to be employed as your tutor.”

She dangled the prospect in front of him like a raft for a drowning man gasping for air.

If I were actually a Hexer, I might actually leap at the opportunity. But as it stands, any experienced Hexer would probably be able to tell very quickly that I am not one of them.

Refusal would invite suspicion, however, so he had only one option.

“That sounds wonderful, Mother. I can only hope to one day redeem myself in your eyes so that I can prove myself to you and Father.”

His mother merely raised her eyebrows, but to him she might as well have been snorting derisively.

“I should hope so. The Menders informed me that your wounds, while extensive, have fully healed. I will be magnanimous and allow you to rest for the remainder of the day. Come dawn tomorrow, and you will report directly to Brianna Ulner in the servants’ quarters to serve whatever duration of your sentence she deems appropriate. Being even a moment late would be incredibly unwise,” her eyes flicked over to Izel then back to him. “Your consort will accompany you, of course, and perform the same tasks as you. Any consort worth her mettle would assist her Lord with just about anything. Perhaps the next few weeks will reveal the extent of her loyalties to you.”

She let her last sentence hang for over a minute before continuing.

“Now, I must be off. There is much work to do and so little time. Many mouths in the city are already whispering of Julian Imerdan’s heroism for helping to slay a monster that claimed an untold amount of lives within Rona’s walls,” she said, a hint of pride in her voice. “Rest well, my son.”

With that, she turned and opened the door, and walked into the hallway. The gem on her staff glimmered and the door snapped shut behind her. He heard her dim, muffled footfalls as she walked down the hallway, away from his room.

Julian turned to face Izel. She smiled at him. He reached for her hand and grasped it. She squeezed him.

“That was pretty devious work, convincing your mother you thought I betrayed you.”

He chuckled.

“When did you realize?” he asked.

“Near-instantly,” she replied. “You’re not an amazing liar, but you aren’t a bad one either. What you did would almost fly in a Tenlani court. Almost.”

“So, you just played along, huh?”

She nodded.

“Why, of course. Didn’t you hear what your mother said? Any good consort would assist her Lord with nearly anything,” she smirked, then lowered the covers so her big brown breasts were in view.

Julian’s throat suddenly felt dry.

“Anything?”

Izel’s eyes glimmered with amusement and lust.

“Did I stutter?” she fluttered her eyelashes at him. “I’m not like your Aemari women. When I say something, I mean it. I don't play games.”

Yes, of course you don’t.

“Unless you’re lying,” he said.

“Well, of course,” she replied. “What fun would the world be if we always told each other the truth? Which reminds me. You told your mother that you loved me. Was that a lie to get her to let you keep me?”

“No,” he said.

The smirk immediately disappeared from her face.

“Nethrus, you actually meant it.”

“I did. That’s how I really feel,” he said, knowing it to be true. He was well past denying his feelings. He would never deny them again after nearly losing her.

“I see,” she blushed and looked away, for once at a loss for words.

He shifted slightly in the cot.

“So, you were working for my mother all this time. You weren’t actually a part of any classless protest movement.”

She nodded hesitantly.

“Yes, if it were up to me, I’d have been building a fortune and living life on my own terms,” she said. “Unfortunately, that woman is as cunning as she is powerful. She found me on the outskirts of Tenlan. I… wasn’t in a good place then and she saw me use Necromancy in self-defense.”

“Why didn’t she turn you in? Why use you? Necromancy is illegal in Aemar, and anyone found to be a Necromancer is either killed or imprisoned at Eptium." He eyed her curiously, craving an answer.

Any opportunity to learn more about what my mother gets up to in her private dealings could be invaluable to me. That she would even risk the potential consequences of her relationship with a Necromancer being discovered is pure insanity. Then again, I am not one to talk.

She snorted. “What does the law matter when there’s power to be gained? My secret was something she could wield against me at any time. It made me the perfect servant to her.”

He moved his arm behind her back, drawing her closer to him. She allowed it, and within moments her large tits were squished against his chest. She lifted a thigh and draped it over his leg possessively. Her face was mere inches from his, their eyes staring into each other and their breaths tickling each other’s face.

“But now you’re free of her. She’ll never bother you again. I won’t allow it,” he said, a protective, possessive urge surging in his chest.

“I know,” she murmured, her eyes gazing into his warmly. “You’re more of a man than anyone I’ve ever met.”

He waited for the mockery. The cutting, sardonic words that would follow her compliment, as they always did, but they never came.

They stared at each other silently, enjoying each other’s company. For a while, all he heard was her breath and her heartbeat, and felt satisfied.

I could spend the rest of the day like this, but I can’t. Rest is a luxury for people like us.

“So. Do you think you're going to be able to tolerate servants’ work?” he said, his lips curing upwards.

“That’s what you’re worried about?” she asked exasperatedly, rolling her eyes.

“I worry about a lot of things.”

“You shouldn’t, at least not about this,” she said. “I’ve seen and done many unsavory things in my life. What’s a few weeks of drudgery atop that? Besides, this woman you will have to report to, Ulner? You’re already thinking about getting her under your control like you did me, aren’t you?”

“Yes,” he nodded.

“Good,” she replied with a nod. “The sooner she falls under your domination, the sooner we can get ourselves out from under her thumb and back into your mother’s ‘good graces.’ Is she good-looking?”

Julian thought about Brianna Ulner. The Barbarian was in her thirties, and fairly beautiful. She had short-cropped dark blonde hair and cool brown eyes. She was tall, muscular, but had rather large breasts and wide hips ideal for child birthing. He had fantasized about her more than once during puberty and after.

“Ah, she is, isn’t she?” Warm fingers grasped his hardening manhood underneath the sheets. Izel bit her lip and began pumping.

He stared at her. “Y-yes.”

“Hm,” she kept jerking his cock. “Your mother mentioned she was married with children. Do you still intend to use her?”

He blinked at her, even as tremors of pleasure coursed through his body as Izel increased her pace. Her soft, practiced fingers felt like heaven.

“I, uh, what about you?” he said.

She raised her eyebrows.

“What about me?”

“Wouldn’t you be jealous?” he said.

She chuckled.

“Oh, don’t flatter yourself. Surely you know by now that Tenlani men take multiple wives on top of their consorts. I’ve been trained to learn how to share a man."

He frowned. That had been one of the more interesting things he’d learned about Izel’s homeland.

Izel was trained to share a man? Who trained her? What were her parents like?

“But still,” he reasoned. “We aren’t in your homeland. You’re free to not live by those expectations anymore.”

She shook her head.

“True, but now I have to live by yours, and a man with the power and legacy of Omreus would never be content with just one woman. Not when you have the power to compel their affections so easily,” she chuckled, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

She really doesn’t have any issues with me taking multiple women for my own. I thought for sure I would have to alter her mentally to get her to accept something like that, or at least leverage the control I have over her now.

“So, what’s your angle?” he said. “What do you get out of this?”

She raised her eyebrows and squeezed his cock, making him moan.

“I can’t just be happy serving you like a good woman should?” her lips curved upwards impishly.

He shook his head and grabbed her breast, drawing a gasp from her. “No. You want something. Tell me what it is.”

She laughed.

“You’re learning. I’ll make a proper civilized man out of you, yet, Aemari,” her eyes burned with lust. “By Tenlani custom, the First Wife of a lord has authority over all the women who follow her into her lord’s arms. She also has power over his domain, as his second in the eyes of Nethrus. Yours will be a powerful name, Julian. A dark, cursed name that will make the world tremble. My god favors you.”

He felt a pleasant shiver run down his spine.

Izel wants to marry me?

"But Tenlani customs have no legal sway in Aemar," he pointed out.

The smile never left her lips.

"True," she allowed, amusement coloring her tone. "Yet according to Aemari customs, a noble's wife still maintains significant legal authority within his holdings."

He nodded. His own mother was testament to that fact. He hadn't known much about what family she had come from, but he knew she had been lowborn and raised to nobility when she married his father.

“So, it’s about power and status, then,” he said.

She shrugged, still tugging on his cock as he groped her tits.

“What isn’t?” she said simply. “But that isn’t the only reason I’m with you. Not even close. There are so many other benefits to being in your company, but if I list them all you’ll get too big a head, and we can’t have that.”

He laughed.

“Of course not.”

She giggled, chewing her lower lip cutely.

“Allow me to show you one of the benefits of being in my company. Of having me become your First Wife.”

Julian had been about to point out that she'd used that Tenlani term again, but the utterance died on his lips when Izel ducked beneath the covers, and within moments, he felt her breath on his cock. He lifted the blanket and looked at her, her voluptuous body was perched between his legs, her tits dangling tantalizingly low.

Her eyes stared into his, practically glowing with need. Then she surged downward, pressing her plush lips against his cockhead. Within moments, she opened them, taking his cock into her warm, wet mouth.

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Julian Imerdan (lv. 7 Psion)

HP: 142/142

ST: 119/119

WP: 372/470

Skills...

<Four Skill Points Available>

Attributes…

Effects…

Julian's Skills

[Manipulation] Suggestion (cost: 20 WP) - The user can telepathically implant a suggestion in the mind of a target to influence an action, thought, or behavior of theirs. The target must be sapient. There is a chance that it might fail depending on the state of the target mind. The more simple and less unusual the suggestion, the easier it is to implant.

[Manipulation] Hypnosis (cost: 30 WP) - The user lulls the target into a light hypnotic trance. While hypnotized, the target will be more open to Suggestion and suggestions, and more likely to divulge information they would not otherwise. Requires the use of a pendant or other foci to draw the target’s gaze. Can be interrupted by any sudden or intense stimuli. Duration: ten minutes.

[Affliction] Mind Jab (cost: 15 WP) - The user projects a weak bolt of psionic energy that attacks the mind of an opponent, causing crippling mental pain that lasts for a few seconds. Affects any living creature with a brain.

[Affliction] Psi-Bolt (cost: 5 WP) – The user emits an unguided bolt of psionic energy that inflicts low Psi damage to a target upon impact. Deals moderate Psi damage against targets affected by Mind Jab, but clears them of the status.

[Connection] Detect Mind (cost: 2 WP/s) - The user can detect the minds of sentient organic beings within ten feet.

[Knowledge] Safe Fall (cost: free) - The user has learned a method of shifting one's body mid-air to significantly mitigate falling damage. Only usable from survivable heights.

[Innate] Focus (cost: free) - The user enters a state of emotional detachment, allowing the user to ignore pain and resist negative mental effects. Increases WP regeneration by 20% while active. Only usable during combat.

Julian’s Attributes

Human - As a member of the human species, your body is more resilient than most other sapient races.

Magical Ancestry - Several of your ancestors possessed powerful magical abilities and talents. The barest hint of their talent resides within you, granting you easier use of magical items.

Psionic - You are capable of affecting physical and nonphysical reality through Will alone. You are resistant to mental effects and psionic damage. You can perceive all spectrums of psionic energy.

Fardreamer - While you sleep, you may randomly send your mental awareness to another place in the universe.

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