Dragon Riders of Etrea 2—Chapter 5

The screaming continued on while Henrik and Anslie stood in the cottage. She gave Henrik a worried look and squeezed his hand tightly.

“That sounds horrible,” she said. “I had no idea it would be so painful.”

“I guess they didn’t either,” Henrik said. The screaming finally stopped a few minutes later.

Anslie took a step toward the door, but Henrik stopped her. “Give her a moment to recover,” he said. And, since she was right there, he pulled her into a tight hug. Anslie was tense as a board, but after a moment she relaxed and rested her head on his shoulder.

“I think learning to love you will be easy, as long as you keep doing this,” Anslie said. She looked up at him with a bit of mischief in her smile. “And of course, there are other things that will help. They’ll bind us together, as well.”

Henrik bent down and kissed her. She was definitely right about one thing; loving her would be easy.

“I hope the other two are like you,” Henrik said. “Wait. Is that an okay thing to say?” He wasn’t sure how to navigate the emotional river of women’s feelings, but it was time to learn.

“You’re fine, don’t worry,” Anslie said, smiling up at him. “But they’re quite different. Isobel’s temper is as fiery as her hair, so watch yourself around her. Meriel is quiet and thoughtful.”

“And what are you?” Henrik asked

Anslie smiled, looking at his lips. “Horn—”

“Well, that’s it,” Rasud said as he walked into the cabin. “I hope it was worth all the pain, not that we had much choice. But here we are, just a man and woman.”

Rasud looked like a fairly average man, maybe slightly on the handsome side of things. He was still a bit short and his long black hair was braided down the back of his head, but his face was simply human now. He rubbed at his bottom lip, clearly getting used to the lack of tusks.

“Come on in, honey,” Rasud said. His lips twitched into an eager smile.

Shel stepped into the room and everyone just stared at her for a moment. Her raven-black hair was the same, falling in waves nearly to her waist, but her face was completely changed. Oh, Henrik still recognized her; again, she looked like a human version of her former self. But that human version was absolutely gorgeous. There was a hint of a wild light in her dark brown eyes, and without the tusks, her lips were nice and full. Her features were slender, almost regal.

“Not sure which version I like more,” Rasud said, looking up at her.

She smiled back at him and felt at her face. “This is going to take some getting used to.”

“Oh honey, you are simply gorgeous,” Anslie said, taking a step closer to her. She reached out and took both of Shel’s hands in hers and practically danced. “We need to get you out of these clothes and into something better.”

“But I like my clothes,” Shel protested, looking down at her dusty robes in shades of gray and tan.

“Nonsense,” Anslie said. “Come here. You two, out.” 

“Well, I know better to argue with that tone,” Rasud said. 

He and Henrik left the cottage and walked over to the nearby apple tree. Henrik reached up and picked two of them, then handed one to Rasud.

“Thank you,” he said. “Glad to see you enjoy apples nearly as much as I do.”

“They’re quite good,” Henrik said, taking a bite. “So, how’s it feel?”

Rasud reached up and touched his forehead, then his nose. “Strange. It’ll take some getting used to, that’s for sure. Part of me feels like I’m abandoning who I really am, but I know the reality is that this will let me live a more normal life. No more shouts of ‘halfbreed’ when I walk by.”

“That’s something to consider,” Henrik said, then took another bite of his apple. “You’re still you, though, no matter what face you wear.”

“Yes, but who I am has been shaped by being a halfbreed,” Rasud replied. “I might just be overthinking it, though. A face is a face, right?”

“Shel turned out nicely,” Henrik said.

Rasud smiled. “Yes, that she did. She’s always been beautiful, and now stunningly so. I must confess that while her human face is gorgeous, it lacks a certain…wild charm that her real face has.”

“How are things with her? How’s the love life?” Henrik threw his apple core as far as he could. It struck the ground far away and three startled birds took flight.

“Things are good, things are very good,” Rasud said. “She comes from a society where women are valued based on the male children they have—like ours, but worse. Her being a powerful shaman has elevated her, but she’s still seen as a woman, just a particularly powerful one. I get the feeling she isn’t exactly experienced with men, if you catch my drift.”

“Is that good or bad?”

“Oh, I like my women experienced,” Rasud said. “Some men prefer virgins, but not me. I want her to know what she’s doing. Still, it’ll be nice to teach Shel, once we get to that point. How about you? Still learning to love so you don’t kill us all?”

Henrik chuckled. “Yeah, that’s not stressful at all. Actually, all jokes aside, it’s not. Anslie is a very easy woman to be around. She’s kind, and genuine.”

“I recommend using terms of endearment as often as possible,” Rasud said. “Try calling her ‘honey’ or something else sweet and pleasant.” He suddenly grinned. “That’s another way plants beat out your diet of meat and beer. Can’t really call Anslie ‘my little ham slice,’ can you?”

Henrik laughed. He had a point.

“So, you’re taking Shel with you to Selfoss?” Henrik asked.

“Yes, and I’m rather excited about that,” Rasud replied. “She’s spent plenty of time in the new orc city, but for obvious reasons has never been to a human city. Oh, there are so many wonderful things she gets to experience, and most of them are food. It’s going to be great.”

“How does she feel about her new face?”

“Well, I think she’ll have nightmares for a week after that much pain,” Rasud said. “I believe her natural tendency will be to reject her new human face, as she is of course very proud of being an orc. However, after experiencing life in a human city, especially with me having a rather large pile of gold….” He shrugged. “Only time will tell.”

“Here she is, boys,” Anslie said from her doorway.

Both men turned to look as Shel emerged from the cabin.

Her hair had been thoroughly brushed, and now hung in silky waves. Her old robes had been traded for Anslie’s clothes, so she wore a snug-fitting pair of breeches that showed off her substantial hips, and a loose-fitting shirt. The shirt was partially unlaced up front, just enough to show the tops of her breasts.

“I have no words,” Rasud said, slowly approaching her. “Well, I have a lot of words, but none of them do you justice, my dear. You are simply stunning.”

Shel blushed, clearly not used to such attention, and walked to Rasud. He reached out for her and took her by the hand, then pulled her close.

“Incredible,” Rasud said, looking her up and down. Well, Henrik noticed that while Rasud’s head moved up and down, his eyes mostly stayed on Shel’s breasts.

Shel squeezed his hand and stood close to him, still blushing. “I feel strange,” she said. Now human, her voice was much softer. Her pronunciation was better without tusks, too.

“Buy her some real clothes when you get to the city, Rasud,” Anslie said.

“Oh, I plan on it,” Rasud replied.

“What, like dresses?” Shel asked.

Rasud smiled. “I know the finest tailor that can—”

“I won’t wear a dress,” Shel said. “Useless clothes. They get in the way of practically everything.”

Rasud smoothly changed course. “Yes, I know the finest tailor that can make you breeches and shirts and everything else you want. We’ll go see her. Oh, maybe we can get you a sword, like Henrik’s!”

“Can I send you with a list of things to get while you’re in the city?” Anslie asked.

“Of course! You have been a most gracious host, so I would be glad to show my appreciation.” Rasud turned and found where their horses were grazing. “I suppose we should spend the rest of the day preparing for our trip.”

“How are you handling that?” Henrik asked.

Shel reached up and touched her face again. “I feel like a traitor to myself, but I know this face will let me experience things I never would have been able to.” She sighed. “I don’t know yet.”

“You should all get ready,” Anslie said. 

“Oh, may I make our dinner tonight?” Rasud asked, glancing over at the garden. “You have such a delightful garden here, and it would simply be a joy to cook with it.”

“Of course!” Anslie replied with a big smile. “Cook whatever you like.”

“Does she have a meat plant?” Henrik asked.

Rasud frowned at him. “No, and she doesn’t have a beer plant either, so you’ll just have to deal with things.”

“Henrik, can you come here?” Anslie asked as she walked back to her cottage.

Henrik grinned at Rasud, then followed Anslie. “Coming, my little ham slice.”