In the Tower's Shadow (for Lanania)
- Thread starter Nebula
- Start date
"It's true! He's a man consumed by rage. Been different ever since he discovered this place, but deep down he still has a heart, even if under a layer of rubble" - she caressed Theodora's face - "He took us in at the most desperate times out of his own will, never asked for anything in return besides few personal favors"
She succubus shrugged - "That I cannot tell. Not many know what's happening in master's head" - the second one butted in playfully - "Maybe he's just lonely. He's been empty since then-.." - the first one frowned at the second one and she quickly fell silent covering her lips, as if touching a forbidden topic by accident. The third one sighed - "Might be, as demons of pleasure we can sate just that. We can't fill the void inside out master's soul. But enough about that" - she picked Theodora's top and handed it to her - "I'll show you to your room. You've had enough hardships for today"
The demoness strolled to the other end of the living quarters and up the stairs. Apparently she led her to a separate tower on the side of the complex. After entering the room Theodora was met with a blissful scent of fresh flowers that were hanging around pillars in the walls. The room wasn't as big, but it had a high ceiling and was pretty cozy - a queen sized bed, writing table, mirrors, a bath tub - pretty much all necessities "How do you like it? I've picked these flowers myself! If something from furniture that you desire is missing just let me know"
"No need to, love" - she winked and headed towards the exit - "When you're ready, the head scribe will be waiting for you in the library. Ask one of the guard minions to lead you there, shouldn't be hard to spot one marching around" she playfully waved and left.
At the moment most closets were empty, besides a few drawers that contained items for bathing - oils, towels and other necessities. Theodora reckoned that she'd get some more clothing once she settled in. The view through the windows wasn't half bad. It covered steep mountain slopes and grassy planes surrounding the tower.
It didn't take long for Theodora to encounter a pair of brown minions walking around the hallway. They were armed with some improvised helmets and short spears. Acting rather casually they tensed up once they saw Theodora and pretended that they are actually performing watch. One of them awkwardly asked something in its gibberish of a language. Realizing she doesn't get a thing he attempted to say something in human language - "Ehh, help? Pretty lady?"
"Ah..!" the minion said something to his partner, soon enough that dialogue turned into a spar between the two, pushing and punching each others shoulders. Apparently they couldn't decide who'd lead her to the scribe, but Theodora wasn't sure if they were more eager to lead her or stay in their post. At last, one of the minions hit the ground and growled like a sour loser. He slowly stood up and improved his helmet before waving at Theodora to follow him - "Lady, follow!" - he strolled at a medium pace a few levels down until they reached a pair of big wooden doors. He pushed one open and pointed at the entrance - "Here" - he mumbled vaguely before strolling back. Behind the doors was sealed a huge round chamber reaching a few tower levels. The library was filled with books and glass display boxes filled with artifacts. The whole chamber was formed like a round barrel, with a few staircases on every floor.
Someone from below spoke to her "Can I help you, young lady?" - looking below the floor she was on Theodora saw a horned figure balancing his body on a small ladder with a bundle of books in his arms. From a closer inspection it was a male faun-like creature. At this point the young paladin could get the idea that the Overlord was hoarding various magical beings and non-humans in his tower.
"Ahh, you must be the palading young master brought in! Splendid, splendid! One moment please!" - he quickly sorted those books on the shelf and climbed down - "This way please, down to the counter" - he pointed at a nearby staircase that led down to the bottom floor. He quickly strolled towards a desk and pulled out a big book filled with cloth scraps and paper sheets between pages from a nearby shelf - "Let me introduce myself, I'm Horatio" - he bowed politely - "And how may I call you, lass?" - his manner of speech was rather energetic, but really polite and well mannered, something you'd expect from a nobility or a person of science and knowledge.
The faun smiled widely - "My my, a trully charming name for a trully charming lady. A true gift of gods" - he winked playfully and opened the huge book on his table. Turning few hundread pages he stopped somewhere in the middle and wrote her name down - "How do you like it here? Staff treating you well? To be honest it took me some time before I got used to the tower's interior when it was just rebuilt and filled with blood thirsty demons for minions. But with time things truly turned out for the better"
His grin deformed into an apologestic grimace - "Huh, not the first time really..." - he coughed nervously and continued - "Judging by my records you were defeated by the Overlord in battle of life and death, thus becoming, in a way, his property" - he cleared his throat - "Yes, yes, that does sound cruel, but these ancient rules are just for show at this point. He would have beheaded you on spot if master wished so. Apparently you struck his fancy" - he turned a few more pages - "Now then, at the moment we have just a few open vacancies fitting your description - siege squire, pest control, health care of some of the residents. Which one do you prefer. Just in case, the name "pest" control is highly ironic"
"Well, as a siege squire you'd assist our master during assaults and infiltrations - the usual overlord business. As for pest control, you'd be assigned to eliminating dangerous creatures that are terrorizing our vassals in local areas, mainly villagers and those right under the tower in the mana zone; later about that part. Sounds simple enough, but here's the catch - those beasts are nothing short of an orc or two you faced during your service in town. These are far more organized or vicious, like fiends or werevolves. Not to mention those cursed by the tower's heart during the cataclysm. Only trained huntsmen were capable of dealing with them, and even then no huntsman ever died in his bed" - he sighed, looking quite concerned - "These are dangerous tasks, and while we are desperate for someone taking care of it, take my advice - pick something that doesn't possess a risk of dying on your first day"