Valentine

We found Aldith waiting for us by the truck, holding a small cloth sack that contained what little she owned.

I wasn't sure if I was glad to see her. I didn't fancy the idea of her staying at the hotel, but neither did I look forward to spending several hours with her in the truck.

With a clear sky and pleasant weather, I rolled down my window and slid the one at the rear open. It was a bit of a bother, and I several times I found myself tucking away strands of hair that had been pulled free by the wind, but at the very least it dissuaded Aldith from striking up a conversation.

I didn't care to suffer through her awkward apology. She was here, that was enough. I'd hand her over to one of the girls at The Blushing Maiden, and they'd find something useful for her to do. Either she'd get a little perspective, or she wouldn't. At least she'd be someone else's problem.

I heard Wally tap on the roof of the truck, and I slowed our pace to better hear him over the wind.

"Val," he called, still raising his voice a little over the noise, "I can't help but notice we haven't noticed a big gap in the mountains."

Wally had a much better view of things from the back of the truck, but it was something I'd begun to notice as well. His seat might not be the most comfortable, cold corrugated sheet metal, but I was jealous of his view. With the mountains looming above us to the right, the roof blocked much of my view. I regretted not bringing along one of the others to drive. Wally had to endure the cold metal, but I'd yet to find a more comfortable seat than Wally's lap.

"I know there's a pass further to the north, but I know we didn't imagine those lights," I insisted.

"I know," he agreed, "But we need to be ready for some surprises. If there's no way through the mountains, then we're about to surprise someone else entirely, and they might not take to sudden visitors."

I brought a hand to my chest, not clutching at imagined pearls, but checking my pistols. They'd not gone anywhere, and neither had the small human pocket-pistol that waited concealed within a pocket on my thigh.

Wally had his axe, as always, though he had left both rifles at the hotel. Not that I was worried. Wally was getting better at projectile magic, and I had some tricks of my own. Not to mention, I could imagine few problems that only the rifles could solve. Better in that case to run, and for that, we had the truck.

I maintained the slow pace and gave Wally the time he'd need to take stock of the mountainside.

I worried that all there'd be to find was a week's old campsite, likely to go unnoticed unless we mounted a proper search, and I didn't have any particular desire to go mountain climbing at the moment.

"We could go back, perhaps wait till tonight," I suggested, "I don't recall spending much time up on the roof at night since those first few days after our arrival."

I hear some rustling as Wally dug around in the pack, and then a thump as he set something on the roof.

"Regina mentioned she'd been keeping watch. I'll ask her," Wally explained.

"Ah, Wallace. How do you expect her to reply?"

Wallace's voice sounded distant as he leaned over the top of the cab to write, "She's good enough now with magic to hold a pen," he assured me, "I'm more worried she won't notice the message. I'll need to add magic push notifications or something. If this doesn't pan out, we can just carry on north, or head back and take a look from the roof tonight, oh-" Wallace knocked on the roof, "Hey, stop the truck."

I pressed down on the brake pedal, and the truck creaked to a stop. I still couldn't see whatever it was Wally had spotted, so I grabbed the handle and pushed open my door. I stood on the truck's running board, and put a hand on the roof to steady myself while I shaded my eyes with the other hand.

"You see the tall evergreen to the left of the old birch?" Wally described, "Twenty degrees up from the tip of the tree, and about five degrees left of that."

There were no lights, but against the craggy and irregular surface of the mountain, below the tree line, I saw it. There was a hole in the blanket of trees, and where there should still have been dirt clinging to the mountainside, there was instead broken stone and piles of rubble. There could be seen a tunnel leading deeper into the mountain. Its square angles and sharply defined sides left no doubt as to the origin. I continued to scan the mountainside, and as I did, I realized rubble covered the whole patch of forest floor. The trees camouflaged the mess, and in passing it might go unnoticed, but now that I knew where to look, I could see where the colour changed. Looking closely, one could make out the reddish-brown of dried pine needles that carpeted the ground below the pine boughs. Nearer the excavation, the ruddy-brown faded to light grey, the splotch of colour spreading out as you went down the mountainside.

"Bugger me," I breathed.

"Again?" Wally sighed.

I rolled my eyes and slapped his arm, "They dug through a mountain, do you have any idea what that must have taken them?"

Wally nodded appreciatively, "Yeah, yeah, I do. Even on Earth with all the tech we've got, tunnelling takes years."

"The gnomes have been here as long as my people," I mused, "A decade of tunnelling, it doesn't seem too unreasonable that they could cover such a distance."

"Either that or it's a completely different group of people who live underground and have a history of mining expertise," Wally suggested, "Okay fine," he said in reply to my exasperated look, "Probably gnomes."

"Um," Aldith asked, "So are we turning around? What are we doing? Where are we going?"

I brought a hand to my forehead and sighed.

Wally mouthed, "Patience," and I shrugged.

"Let's drive up and say hello," Wally suggested, "I don't imagine they'll be happy to see we know about their secret project, but they must have spotted the lights from the hotel by now so it's not like they didn't know we were out here."

I frowned, "Will the truck make that climb?"

"Maybe if we had a winch. Just get us close."

The truck made it up and over the next rise, and as the hill fell away before us, a squad of gnomish miners came into view. They were waiting for us near the entrance to another tunnel, this one flanked by a pair of steel doors. The group was waist-deep in rubble, and while each man held a pick, I wouldn't say that they were brandishing them.

I stopped the truck, pulled the lever for the parking brake, and pulled apart the wires that kept the engine running. The engine died, and there was silence in the cab.

Wallace ducked to speak through the truck's rear window, "Aldith, stay here," he instructed, "Val and I are going to say hi."

The truck rocked to the side and suspension creaked as he hauled himself out of the bed, and I hopped down from the cab to join him.

Wallace spoke quietly as we crossed the distance to the group of miners, "Gnomes are really into body art?"

"Their skin doesn't react well to sunlight," I explained, speaking softly so my voice didn't carry.

The typical tunnel dwelling gnome looked like a stocky shrunken goblin. But even without the tattoos, it was plain that these were not ordinary gnomes. Rather than the yellow skin that was typical of the species native to Caniforma, what little hadn't been tattooed was green, or in the case of one gnome, dark blue.

"They'll tan with gradual exposure," I continued, "Yellow turns to orange, turns to green, turns to blue. The tattoos help with the sunlight when they're still getting adapted to the surface. These are gnomish rangers. The blue one will be the most experienced."

"Well met, traveller," the elder gnome called, once we were a dozen or so paces away. We stopped there, and he continued, "Am I to understand that you're Lord Wallace?"

Wallace quirked an eyebrow, "I guess word's gotten around."

"Aye, it has."

Wallace nudged a piece of rubble the size of my torso, pushing it aside easily with the toe of his shoe, "You guys still working? Is it clear through to the other side?"

The gnome shrugged, "Mayhap."

"Well you guys are here," Wally observed, "And the entrance certainly looks large enough," he continued, nodding at the mouth of the darkened tunnel, "If you really want us to take the long way around, we can. But it's not like we're going to forget it exists, and I was really hoping to be in the city for dinner."

The gnome rubbed the back of his neck and stared down the tunnel, "We're not just supposed to let any old fool use it," he grumbled.

"Are you planning to kill us all?" Wally asked openly.

"What? By the stones, no," he replied, "Why would we do such a thing?"

Wally threw up his arms, "Then I guess there's not a ton you can do. Besides, I'm not any old fool. You said it yourself, I'm Lord Wallace, that makes me an important fool," Wally jerked his chin at the mountain, "I'm sure you've seen the hotel from your little overlook. Tell you what, you let me through and tell me who to see and maybe we can work something out. Caniforma could do with a rest stop on this side of the mountains, and I'm in a hurry to get dinner."

"Alright," the gnome relented, "I suppose I could see my way to letting you through this once. If you want to work out a deal, speak with Foreman Sanders. He's the man who makes the call on which sorta fools can and can't use the tunnel."

Wally tilted his head at the tunnel, "Do you have any of your people in there? The vehicle's exhaust is not the best to breathe."

The stout little creature shook its head, "Last of the rubble got cleared out hours ago, workers went home. We're just here to keep an eye on things."

We took our leave, and I followed Wally back up the hill.

Caniforma was not like any other city I'd seen, let alone heard of.

Built atop a mesa, so large that the far side was hidden behind the horizon, newcomers might be forgiven for thinking they'd arrived in the wrong place.

The tallest building, used by goblin and gnomish surveyors, was a simple spire. The stairs were just wide enough for two people to pass if they turned their shoulders, and continued in a spiral up to the observation deck. I'd been up it before, including when I'd first discovered the hotel, but it was not a climb I had any intention of making again.

Surrounding the mesa were the estates of the goblin families that lived atop Caniforma, with perhaps a mile between any two of the compounds.

Hard-packed dirt covered the mesa, with scrubby grass and short twisted trees eeking out a living here and there. It was poor land to farm, but neither goblins nor gnomes were bothered. The gnomish farms were far below the surface, kept lush and bountiful with water drawn from subterranean oceans. The goblins, by comparison, simply did not bother with agriculture.

While the cataclysm had brought Parabuteo and Pelignos to their knees, the goblins had flourished. No longer were a few dozen families in constant friction over exactly where one territory ended and the other began. The cataclysm had done away with territory altogether. While the tides wiped the slate clean every morning, making farming impossible, it also brought with it fresh prey on a near-daily basis. A whole generation of young goblins who'd previously been relegated to subordinate positions under their parents suddenly found they could strike out on their own. There were now over a hundred families with compounds atop the mesa, most of them young offshoots from the more mature families.

The family compounds would be closed to us, but the gnomes kept a small trading outpost at the base of the spire, and that's where we headed.

It consisted of two short streets, one like a road cut right from Parabuteo, and the other from Pelignos.

There was a slight bump as the truck moved from the packed dirt to the close-fit cobbles typical of the elven city, and I brought the truck along the road to The Blushing Maiden. Only the decorative ironwork and detailed engraving allowed one to refer to the six feet of stone surrounding the Maiden as a 'fence'.

The guards at the gate recognized me as I approached, and they stood aside, one of them giving me a wave and a friendly smile.

I parked the truck next to the stables, and Aldith caught my eye. She looked pitiful, sitting there with everything she owned in the world clutched in her lap, head slightly bowed, her nervous gaze fixed on me.

She made as if to say something, but Wallace was already at the door. She startled slightly as he pulled it open, but calmed when she realized who it was. He peered down at her, leaning against the cab with one arm on the roof.

"Aldith," Wally sighed, "I know this is a lot to handle. You're skipping about ten millenniums of cultural development-"

"Is that a type of flower?"

Wally chuckled, "A millennium is a long time, a thousand years, and this place is going to take some getting used to. But you'll be safe here, you'll be able to build a life for yourself, and no one's gonna touch you unless you want them to. All that said, if you decide this isn't for you, you just let me know. We'll be staying in the city a day or two, and we'll be coming back through here again once we finish in Pelignos. Say the word, and we'll take you home, okay?"

Aldith swallowed and nodded, "Okay."

"Come on, let's go meet Val's friends."

I'd hardly stepped through the door before Purity had me wrapped up in her arms, "Val, it's so good to see you," she cooed.

I hugged the fey girl back, and she kissed me on the cheek.

"How long are you staying- oh, oh my. Who is this?"

"This," I giggled, slapping the giant on the chest, "Is Wallace."

"Oh my, there sure is a lot of him."

"Wally, this is Purity."

The young fey was a tad shorter than myself, but blessed in areas that I was not. Purity was well into womanhood but had maintained a slim, girlish figure. Though fey, her beauty had a certain down-to-earth appeal. More akin to a pretty peasant girl than a beautiful noblewoman. People let their guard down around Purity when they might not with someone else.

"Hi," Wally replied.

"And this," I continued, gesturing to Aldith, who wasn't quite hiding behind the big man, "Is Aldith. I was hoping she could help out around here."

"A human? Boy, she'd be awfully popu-"

"Help out," I repeated carefully, "I don't know, maybe tending the horses."

"Ah, I see. I'm sorry," Purity apologized, "I just got a little ahead of myself," she held out a hand to the girl, "Here, why don't I get you settled? Val, I think you know the way?"

Aldith didn't move, and Wally spoke to her quietly. "It's alright," he promised, "Just remember what I said."

Aldith straightened her back and nodded. Though she didn't take Purity's hand, she let the fey lead her down the hall.

Thick walls and a plush carpet meant The Maiden was quiet as I led Wally by the hand, up to where my friends were staying.

I tapped lightly on the door, paused, and then knocked harder to make sure they heard me.

The door swung open and-

"Val! I didn't know you were coming, come in, come in- Oh. Now who is this?"

"Wallace, this is Virtue. Virtue, this," I wrapped my arms around Wally's forearm, "Is Wallace."

Virtue was even shorter than Purity. She was an inch under four and a half feet, but as she did me the honour of pretending to believe me when I said I was five feet tall, I pretended to believe she was four foot six. Not that her height was anything special for a gnome. Though not a ranger, she'd indulged in her people's predilection for extensive tattooing. The tattoos of a gnomish ranger told you something about their station. The poorest had to settle for simple solid colours, while those with a little more money would get simple designs and tribal patterns. The well-off would cover themselves in scenes of hunting, warfare, and the like. Often, you'd see all three in combination on a gnomish ranger, marking their ascension through the ranks. Not so with Purity. Her entire body was a canvas, and the art she wore showed conquests of a different sort.

"My my, don't you look like a handful. Good thing Val has so many friends."

"I think I'm fine with just Val," Wallace replied as seriously as he could with his face going all red.

I pulled gently on Wally's arm, and he followed me into the room where the others were reclining on couches. Though not a place for meeting clients, it was still comfortable and well-appointed, serving as a common-room for the private chambers that branched off it.

"Wally, this is Obedience," I explained, still hugging his arm and grinning like an idiot.

Another fey, and a big one at five and a half feet, Obedience typically wore a fey slave master's traditional attire. And though she wasn't working at the moment, she was still attired in men's clothing, with a short tunic and tight trousers. With her strong jaw and a propensity to eschew makeup, she had a generally androgynous look. Reclining on some cushions near the fire, she regarded Wally as if she were considering how best to climb up a cliff.

"And this," I continued, "Is Chastity."

Chastity was bundled up in a thick cotton robe. It was white, as was just about everything else she wore, and covered every inch of her below the neck. Under the robe, I knew she was wearing about half a square foot of fabric. So little that it had to be stuck on, and could only be very generously called clothing. But she had the body for it. Tall, thin, and shaped like an hourglass, the sprite knew how good she looked, and Chastity liked to be appreciated.

Chastity let the robe slip a little, revealing a sliver of mouthwatering curves, and waved hello to Wallace.

"Was Irony already taken?" he quipped.

"Yes."

I turned to look and clung tighter to Wally's arm as Irony came through the door.

She was barefoot except for her black stockings, and her heels dangled negligently from one hand. Black, with a heel like a knife's blade, they looked more like weapons than footwear. Even barefoot, she was well over six feet tall, one of the few elves I'd ever met that had a stature on-par with Temerity. She wore a tight black corset that only just covered her chest, along with elbow-length satin gloves. Though elven, her hair was jet black, and she wore it in a severe bun. Held lightly in her other hand, was a coiled whip.

Irony lifted her chin, though she seemed to find it difficult to look down her nose at Wallace, what with him towering over her, "And you are?"

"Wallace," he supplied.

A small smile had crept onto his face, and the red flush had begun to fade.

Gods, it's the wordplay. You'd think he's a scrawny little thing who spends all day with his nose in a book.

Irony's arm flashed, and the whip seemed to flicker. Wallace got his forearm up before the tip could strike him in the chest, and the braided leather wrapped around it. He twisted his arm and caught the cord in his palm. He clenched his fist and yanked hard on the whip.

It took Irony right off her feet, and she fell to her knees before him.

It was all I could do to keep from squealing in delight.

Wally frowned, "That wasn't very nice."

Irony looked first to Wallace, then to me, confusion evident on her face.

"I'm just here to see you guys," I explained quickly, "Not for anything else. I'll, um, make sure you don't have to work while we're in the city though."

Irony hopped to her feet, and I met her hug, "Gods, sorry girl. I just assumed, you being here, what with your friend and all-"

"Oh, I'm absolutely sleeping with him, don't worry about that."

Wally pinched the bridge of his nose, "I swear to god, Val."

"It's cute, the way he blushes like a little girl," Irony grinned, "I'm going to get changed. I'll be right back."

Purity made it back from helping Aldith just about when Irony finished changing out of her work clothes, and we gathered near the fire. Chastity remained on her piled cushions, joined by Purity. The other girls had taken to the couches, as had Wallace, and I was at my proper place in Wally's lap.

"Of course I'm telling the truth!" I cried, "He reeked of elf noblewoman when he came to meet me, right before we left the city. He fucked Temerity cross-eyed, went for round two in the morning, and then left with me."

"Is he going to pass out?" Obedience asked, "I've not met a human before, but if a fey blushed like that, I'm pretty sure they'd pass out."

"If a fey blushed like Wally does, I'm pretty sure they'd die," I muttered, glancing back at the big man, "He's timid about his conquests. Anyway," I continued, turning back to my friends, "Temerity was real mad about the whole situation, she shaved my head, and sent me back with an offer for Wally here."

"Shaved your head?" Irony asked, "How long ago was this?"

"Just shy of two weeks," I replied excitedly, and reached behind me to begin pulling my hair free of the flight suit, "Wally fixed it!"

The girls watched in amazement as my hair flowed free and began to puddle around my ankles like violet mercury.

"And now you know why we're checking in with Caniforma and Pelignos," I explained, "Temerity's got her hooks into Parabuteo, and we need support from somewhere else."

A sly smile spread across Virtue's face, "Well if you're on the far side of the mountains, one of my clients mentioned a tunnel-"

"We know," I admitted.

"It's how we got here," Wally added, "I've got to track down a Foreman Sanders and work out a deal with him."

Irony wore a shameless smirk, "He talks a big game, but he's a pushover."

"You guys seem a bit too forthcoming with the intel," Wally mused.

Purity shrugged, "She's crazy about you, it's the least we can do to help."

Now it was my turn to flush, "I'm not 'crazy' about anyone. I'm a mature adult, I-"

"You were just telling us all about how he reeked of elf when he was done with Temerity. Well, I can hardly catch a whiff of your scent under his!" Purity laughed.

"It's true," Obedience agreed, "I almost wasn't sure it was you at first, you smell like human. Not that it's a bad thing, Wallace," she added quickly, "I for one understand why little Val here is all over you."

"Jealous," I accused.

That earned me a round of frank nods, and a barely audible grumble from Wallace.

Food arrived just then, saving Wallace from a conversation that was becoming more awkward for him by the minute, and we broke for dinner.

I spent a little time catching up with the others afterwards and got so caught up in the conversation, laughing and drinking with my friends, that I didn't notice Wally had disappeared.

I excused myself hurriedly. Wally might be overcome with embarrassment at his present accommodations, but he was curious to a fault, and I worried he'd gone off and found himself some trouble. I'd taken my plate with me when I left the table and had intended to leave it in the common area's small kitchenette while I went to look for him, but there was Wally.

He and Irony were leaning against the wall, and though Wally was facing away from me, I could see Irony smiling like an excited little girl while she spoke quietly but quickly to him. If Wally was still blushing, it had at least left his neck and ears.

Irony's innocent smile faded to a sly grin as she noticed my arrival, "Ah- There's our little girl."

"I hope you weren't talking about me," I giggled, though it was a little forced.

For a moment, Wally revealed a part of Irony that I'd never before seen. Somehow it seemed more intimate than anything she'd ever done to me in the bedroom, and I felt oddly jealous.

"No, Wally was just telling me about planets," she explained, and for a moment there was that innocent little laugh again, "But what is it, Val? You looked a little worried for a moment there."

I shook my head, "I was worried Wally had wandered off somewhere. But since here's here, I, ah, well I was talking to the others, and we worked something out."

"Val," Wally warned.

"Yes, you were very clear," I agreed quickly, "But I know how sore you get sometimes."

Irony perked up at that and seemed to consider Wally in a new light. I don't think any of her clients had ever seen that sympathy in their eyes. I certainly hadn't, though I do recall being blindfolded most of the time.

Wally arched an eyebrow, and I pressed on, "Not everything here involves people taking their clothes off-"

"Well," Irony hedged.

"Okay yes, but it's just a massage, with no funny business!" I added quickly, "You're too stubborn to say anything, but I know carrying around all this weight can't be easy on your joints. Come on. It'll be good for you, and my friends get to feel you up, I get to show you off, everyone wins."

"Alright," Wally relented, "Sitting in the truck wasn't great for my spine in any case."

Irony and I each took an arm, and Wally let us lead him into one of the other rooms.

"Take everything off, and put on the towel," Irony instructed.

"We've got an extra-big one, just for you," I giggled, and held it out to him.

He grinned despite himself, sighed, and shooed us out of the room.

He allowed us back in a little later, and I entered with the others, though I was the only one with a bottle of wine and an empty glass.

I took a seat in the corner and poured myself a glass while my friends attacked Wally's chiselled form with massage oil and their dextrous fingers.