“Wait, you two…” Cari asks, fascinated.

  Somehow, it came to this.

  “Oh, yes. It was quite the treat, too,” Krissy responds, her sultry smirk on full display.

  I regret introducing them.

  She sighs wistfully, “It’s honestly a shame she won’t let me do it again.”

  I just keep my face buried in my hands, trying and failing to tune them both out.

  When Krissy finally calmed enough to restore her professional mask, we’d taken our reunion to one of the private rooms upstairs. After introducing them to each other, Cari and Krissy hit it off like two peas in a pod.

  Which just means they’re both teasing me relentlessly.

  “Whoa… she was good enough to make you want more?” Cari asks.

  “Hey!”

  They ignore me.

  “That’s part of it, but mostly I enjoyed making her squirm. She’s really quite cute when—”

  “Okay, nope!” I shout over her. “End of conversation! We are moving on! Krissy, I want a spa day with Cari. Please help me get that set up.”

  Despite my embarrassment, I muster up the courage to glare disapprovingly at both of them.

  Krissy pouts. “Aw, that’s no fun.”

  Cari, annoyingly, joins her. “Yeah, Emi, that’s no fun.”

  I just growl at them. “You two are incorrigible. Krissy, a spa day. Please.”

  She lets out a dramatic sigh before standing. “Fine, fine. Together or separate?”

  I give Cari a narrow eyed look. “Together.”

  Can’t have her going off with someone to spill all of my secrets.

  “Ugh, boring,” Cari complains.

  “Yeah, well, I have to babysit you two somehow,” I mumble.

  Her hand snaps to her chest as if I’d put an arrow through her heart, and Krissy lets out a horrifyingly alluring giggle, but I ignore them both.

  She ends up taking us to the baths first, where we wait for her to get some help.

  When she’s gone, Cari pipes up. “What does she mean by getting help?”

  Confusion is written all over her face, and it hits me then that she might not have experienced this before. I’d never heard of her getting bathed by someone else, other than when we bathe together, at least.

  “Oh, they’re going to bathe us,” I say flatly.

  “Huh?! Since when did they do that?” she asks.

  “Since Emilia happened,” Krissy says as she returns through the sliding doors, Nyria in tow.

  I groan in defeat at the sight of them both. I should have expected Nyria to be the one to tag along, but I didn’t for some reason.

  Nyria giggles. “Oh, don’t worry your cute little fox ears. I’m here to take care of Miss Cari. Besides, Krissy won’t let anyone touch you for a while.”

  To my surprise, Krissy actually blushes at the comment, refusing to meet my eyes. She doesn’t refute it though, instead moving to a small cubby with supplies.

  Damn, she was that bad off? Now I kind of feel bad for coming here last…

  “Okay, but what all will you be doing to me? I’m… uh, no offense, of course, you’re both beautiful… but I’m not into women,” Cari says, looking concerned.

  Nyria just smiles at her. “No worries. Mistress Emilia has made it clear that we’re to curb our more intimate services when involving her. Naturally, with you by her side, that will extend to you as well. Unless, of course, you change your mind. Then we can—”

  “No! No, that’s perfectly fine as is, thank you,” Cari interjects.

  Krissy sidles up beside me with an arm full of sponges, soaps, oils, and even more things I can’t place. The room we settled into is one of the ones right next to the baths, where most of the supplies for them are kept.

  She and Nyria guide Cari and I out of the room and through the now familiar sliding doors, right into a steaming room.

  Krissy must have got the bath going when she left to get Nyria...

  She guides me over to some stools, and setting her supplies on a nearby table. Then she helps me undress before rinsing me off, getting me clean before entering the bath proper.

  Cari seems a bit thrown off, but Nyria masterfully guides her to doing the same at the stool set up beside us.

  And then... Krissy starts to sing.

  She doesn’t announce it or draw attention to herself. She just starts humming as she works, sending a soft melody curling through the air like lazy smoke. Her voice is like warm honey, settling into the cracks in my mind and body in a way that makes everything else just melt away.

  Gradually she adds lyrics. The songs themselves are slow and lilting, half lullaby, half love song, and all seemingly as old as time. Stories of spirits guiding lost lovers together, of drifting boats under starlight, and of someone waiting for their soulmate to return home.

  Siren songs.

  Nothing too tragic, just wistful and gentle and full of longing.

  Cari eventually melts into it, too, tension bleeding from her shoulders as the hours drift by in a blur with small snack breaks in between their services. Baths, hair washing, scalp massages… they even cleaned our ears, and Krissy goes so far as to groom mine.

  There’s a bit of teasing when I start purring from it, but it doesn’t last long. I return the favor the moment Cari starts letting out little pleased sighs and moans when they rub our hands and feet during the manicures and pedicures.

  I'm not surprised, though. Her job keeps her on her feet all day, all while writing and sorting through more paperwork than I care to imagine.

  By the time we get to the massages near the end of the day, we’re both putty in their expert hands. I’m already so relaxed that it’s hard to stay awake, and a glance at Cari shows that she’s suffering the same problem.

  “Cari, wanna crash in my room today?” I ask through a yawn as we’re guided to some massage tables placed side by side.

  “Mmkay,” she mumbles.

  And with that, we were set.

  Krissy, the beautiful songstress, works through the rest of my body before moving on to my back. I don’t even have the energy left to be embarrassed about how close she gets to my more intimate regions, despite the thrum each close call sends to my core.

  She knows exactly what she's doing, and exactly how far she can go with it, reminding me just how strange Entertainer classes are.

  She’d also learned to save the base of my tail for absolute last.

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Morning comes too soon, and then it passes too fast. Next thing I know, I’m being led through the Guild by Cari, the usual cheers and jeers floating behind us. It’s hard to keep dozing with so many people looking at me, but anything before now is a blurry mess in my mind at best.

  I remember breakfast and walking through town like a zombie. That’s about it.

  Cari herself practically glows, her eyes dancing with delight as she tugs me along behind her.

  Morning people are the worst.

  She’s so energetic that she either doesn’t notice or outright ignores my jealous glare. Walking through the Guilds main hall wakes me up pretty fast though, and by the time we get to Folly’s office, I’m ready to start the day.

  I’m still sleepy—because of course I am, it’s too early for this shit—but I’ll live.

  A familiar voice bellows at us through the open door.

  “There they are!” Scruffy says. “I was starting to think I’d have to hunt you two down.”

  Stepping inside, I find everyone that cleared the Temple of the Fallen with me interspersed throughout the room. To my right is Orin, the Mage who leads one of the two parties. To my left is Kiki, the leader of the other party.

  I decide to make it my mission to avoid Kiki for the whole day, but she shatters my plan instantly. Her strange accent and high pitched voice fills my ears, and I’m again reminded of just how odd this woman is.

  Where is she even from? Who speaks like that?

  “Emilia! Thank the gods! Can you tell me how the paint is now? I added some more glitter to it, and made it more—

  “This isn’t the time, Kiki,” Folly interjects, rescuing me. “Is everyone ready to go? The meeting officially starts at tenth bell, so we have just under an hour. Plenty of time, but I’d rather us be early than late.”

  Kiki visibly deflates. If she weren’t so imposing, I’d have thought it almost cute.

  When nobody objects, he gets up and leads the way out the back entrance. On the other side of the training arena is a simple carriage, albeit a large one. Its driver sits at the front, a steering wheel in one hand as he waves us on with the other.

  We all hop in, getting situated and comfortable, and I make a point of sitting on the opposite end from Kiki. Hopefully she’s too polite to yell just to talk to me. Cari sits across from me, and I give her a glare.

  “I still need to get you back for that,” I mutter.

  She blinks. “For what?”

  “You’ll know when the time comes,” I say with a dark smile.

  “Huh? What did I do?” she says, looking concerned. “Emi? Emilia. Hey, stop ignoring me!”

  I ignore her as we roll out of the Guild’s rear gate, turning onto one of the broader streets that leads toward the upper quarter. The ride isn’t far—maybe fifteen minutes at a lazy pace—but it’s uphill the whole way, and the cobbles are busy enough that a carriage makes more sense than walking.

  There’s probably something about using a carriage as a status symbol or some such, but I don’t care enough to pick apart people’s motives.

  The Council Hall sits near the heart of the wealthiest district in the city, surrounded by offices, trade houses, and a scattering of fine estates. It’s only slightly smaller than the Guild or the Church, but it still holds its own in the size department, and its domed roof, white stone pillars, and sweeping steps make it feel just as important.

  It’s built large for a reason, though. While it houses the Council, it also serves as a public forum. Some meetings, like today’s, are also open to anyone brave or bored enough to attend.

  After disembarking, and waiting for Folly to speak with the driver, we make our way up the steps alongside another half dozen other people. Walking into the Council Hall is like walking into the Church, except instead of pews, there are tiered seats arranged against all but the back wall.

  Easily half of the available seating has been filled already, which I both did and did not expect. The word had spread that the meeting would be covering a lot of what’s happened over the past couple of weeks, as expected.

  I hadn’t expected so many people to actually show up, though. The air is thick. Warm, and getting warmer as more bodies are crammed into one space. Carried with it is that blend of perfume, old parchment, and sweat that all busy buildings seem to have.

  Seated at the table against back wall are four people that I feel is safe to assume are the Councilors. Behind them are half a dozen guards, which brings my attention to another half dozen stationed throughout the room in cleverly designed spaces made just for them to stand watch.

  I take a closer peek at the Councilors.

  Human Scholar

  Level 52

  Human Merchant

  Level 37

  Human Fighter

  Level 58

  Human Mage

  Level 47

  The first, sitting at the far left, is a sharp eyed older woman with silver-streaked black hair tied in a braid so tight that just looking at it is giving me a headache. The Merchant is a younger man in fine clothes, wearing a bright smile on his face as he talks to the Fighter beside him.

  The Fighter in question looks like the embodiment of a middle-aged military man. Broad-shouldered, clean-shaven, wearing his uniform like it’s a suit of armor. Lastly, on the far right, is a man who’s the picture of nobility, with all the fancy clothes and jewelry included.

  I’m not certain of it, but I almost swear he’s glaring at us from across the room, despite the smile practically stitched onto his face. Before I can point it out to Cari or Scruffy, he turns to join the conversation between the Merchant and Fighter.

  Is that who Scruffy was talking about yesterday? Or did I just imagine that? And why me? What did I do this time?

  I was far enough away that I could have just been mistaken, but I’ve learned to trust my instincts after all the shit I’ve had to deal with these past couple weeks.

  My thoughts return to the moment when one of the guards stationed around the room approaches our group and Folly steps forward. They talk for a moment before the guard guides us to some seats I hadn’t noticed were empty near the front of the gathering, each one occupied by little slips of parchment that say ‘reserved’.

  While they hadn’t reserved one for Folly, there’s a two seat gap to either side of us, so he settles into one of those. He spares Cari and I a glance, as if asking if we’re ready for what’s to come. I give him a nod and he faces forwards with a smile.

  Thankfully, Folly and Cari sit between me and Kiki, so I don’t have to entertain her while we wait for the meeting to start.

  It doesn’t take too long. I spend the next thirty or so minutes quietly chatting with Cari about our spa day, as we hadn’t had time to gush about it during the fact.

  The ringing of the tenth bell vibrates the whole room, silencing everyone in an instant. The noble looking Mage stands, paper in hand, and starts to speak.

  “The Small Council of Bephis hereby calls this meeting to order,” he says, his voice carrying easily across the hall. “On today’s docket: first, matters concerning the recent outbreak of gang violence within our walls, and the steps taken to see it ended. Second, progress reports on the repairs to our streets and structures damaged in those events. Third, the reopening of sanctioned access to the lower tunnels. And lastly, the formal recognition and commendation of those whose efforts have made these successes possible.”

  When he says the last part, I catch him sending me a glare. It’s quick. Almost too quick, but this close to the table, I can tell that I wasn’t imagining things earlier.

  He sits down after the announcement, acting for all the world like nothing happened, and the older woman stands to take the attention from him.

  “Since the commencement of the most recent System Update, the city of Bephis has endured a sustained period of disruption, instigated by certain unlawful organizations whose activities have, in sum, constituted a significant breach of public order,” she begins, her voice clipped and exact. “These entities have engaged in repeated violations of property rights, the unlawful appropriation of goods…”

  My eyes start to glaze over as she drones on about their many crimes. After what feels like an eternity, I end up dozing off in my seat. Cari elbows me a couple times, waking me from my bureaucracy induced coma, but it doesn’t last long.

  She gives up after the third attempt, I think, because next thing I know she’s gently slapping my cheek. This time, when I open my eyes, I’m laying on her shoulder.

  “Nooo,” I murmur.

  “Yeeeees,” she responds instantly, bouncing her shoulder up and down to jostle me up. “Scru—ahem, Captain Tolsted is about to present his discoveries, and we need to get up there with him.”

  I let out a groan, voicing my complaint as much as I can.

  “—now, please. Captain, step forward,” the old woman says, cutting into my thoughts with the tail end of whatever it was she’d been talking about.

  Hundreds of eyes turn towards him, and then towards us when he stands and waves for us to join him.

  Oh, shit, right now now? Wow, that was fast. Er… wait, how long was I asleep?

  I snap my head off of Cari’s shoulder, praying that everyone in the room hadn’t just caught me napping. Then I join Cari as she stands, and we quickly flank Scruffy as he starts walking to the Councilors table.

  They give us confused looks, but don’t object to us joining him, seemingly curious about what’s going on. It only takes a few seconds to reach the front of the table, though it’s so massive that we’re still half a dozen paces away from the Councilors themselves.

  When Scruffy speaks, his deep voice carries all throughout the space, nearly as well as the Councilors’ had.

  “Before any commendations are awarded to my men and I, I wish to present evidence of treachery within this very Council,” Scruffy says, his voice hard and steady.

  A ripple of murmurs sweeps the hall, but he doesn’t stop.

  “Elias Morvane has betrayed the city of Bephis, and worse, the Republic of Tyrania itself. These documents—” he lifts a thick sheaf bound with twine “—were seized from the headquarters of the Flaming Hands gang during our final raid.”

  He pauses for a moment to pass them to the older woman, farthest from Morvane. The man in question stares at scruffy in wide-eyed shock, as if he hadn’t thought it possible to be caught at all.

  In all fairness to him, the Rogue would have succeeded if it weren’t for my absurd skills and storage item.

  After a moment to let the Councilor open them, Scruffy continues as she skims.

  “They bear his personal seal, his handwriting, and in some cases, his own signature. They include correspondence detailing payments, instructions, and safe passage agreements for gang members and operatives of the Etheron Empire's Ember Veil through our city’s streets and upper Tunnel layers. The handwriting has already been verified by two scribes of the Delvers Guild, and the seal is of a design unique to his office. There can be no mistake as to their origin, nor to the man who authored them.”

  When he finishes, the room erupts. Parroted accusations and shouts fly, the halls vaulted ceiling throwing the noise back down at us in a deafening echo. Morvane just sits there, pale as a ghost, staring at Scruffy with a look of terror.

  I barely catch the flicker of movement as a dagger appears from thin air, flying right at the Councilor.