A Troubadour and His Gnoll Bard Chapter 2
Getting into the swing of things with this one. I've never done a chapter by chapter series, nor have I planned on making it run so long. I'm definitely doing a lot of research now on how to bridge the gaps between parts and make those individual parts interesting. For now I hope you enjoy <3. Oh, and prepare for some experimental stuff :D.
I awoke to the sound of birds chirping and a camp bustling with noise full of gnolls moving about the camp. As soon as I sat up I immediately regretted waking up at all, my back screaming in protest from last night's fun. My head swam in a mire of morning grogginess from both the lack of sleep and my body's fatigue, even my vision was blurry. Rubbing the sleep from my eyes I brought them open to remember that I was still a prisoner. I had been captured by a band of gnolls looking for a songbird, well, to say I was captured would spin quite the tale, but no. Foolishly I had accepted coin in return for following the band of gnolls back to their camp to sing and dance for their delight, how could I have known their leader's intent? I shifted for a bit and felt the bandages upon my back, the ache's and pains of the night before reminding me that I did have one light in all of this mess, Gaerr. Looking around the tent I found him sitting down, watching me with an intense ruby eyed gaze. He easily towered over me, even while sitting, but to most gnolls he was a runt, a well muscled and endowed runt who could make music like no other thanks to my own teaching. Noticing his mood seemed as gloomy as when we first met as jailer and prisoner, I leaned in to touch his cheek wincing at the pain from moving. Though he leaned against my touch and closed his eyes, he still kept the same look, frustrated, and a little bit mournful. Gaerr had wanted to take me away from this horrible camp, had wanted to leave this place that didn't accept his talents, and yet both of us had squandered a chance by choosing to make love instead. The rough creature could barely control himself in bed, and neither could I, and so my back and body suffer the consequences making moving quite the difficult task. Even with my body the way it is, tonight we had to leave, both of us were desperate for escape.
Gaerr left only to retrieve food and fresh bandages, his clawed digits surprisingly skilled at being gentle with a wounded human. Eventually I was taken out of my tent prison and told to sing and dance for the amusement of the various gnolls around the camp, which wasn't too difficult despite the protest of my body. It was a good test though, to see if I could move about without collapsing to my knees from the pain. Gaerr himself stood silently among the gnolls, watching me with shielded eyes, but I could see the concerned clouded behind them. I made no motion to acknowledge it, though I so desired to soothe his troubled heart. The leader of the gnolls seemed to have suspected something, perhaps it was in the scent, or the way that Gaerr looked at me, but whatever the reason he pulled Gaerr aside to speak to him in hushed growls and grunts. Eavesdropping wasn't difficult, even under the melody of my lute, especially since I'd always been the nosy sort.
First came the gruff voice of the leader, "You're poisoned...Don't think I haven't seen you take your little strings into the songbird's tent. We have no use for a singing hunter."
Gaerr snarled for a moment but his voice came out obedient and low, "I am for the tribe, nothing else. I only wish to see how he does what he does, do you not trust me Terrak?" I couldn't help but feel a bit of pride at his use of words, his ability to lie and feign emotion in a way that would make even the most experienced mummer envious.
Unfortunately Terrak didn't seem to believe his act, or he was too stubborn, "No! It is poison. I know that you waste time and that is enough for me to replace you. You will be guarding the edge of camp at night, far away from the songbird's tent."
I wanted to turn, to see Gaerr's expression, but I could not draw suspicion to myself. Instead I played a happy song and smiled as big as I could to show that I was a perfectly placated servant. The other gnolls were happy enough to believe my little facade, and even showered me with cheers and praise, if only I could truly enjoy the buzz of the crowd without having the thought that I was a slave to their moods, should they day come when I do not entertain them, I wonder what they would do?
When it came time to bring me back to my tent and prison, a gnoll much heavier set than Gaerr appeared, with black fur speckled with bits of white. This one liked to talk much more than Gaerr did and he had a skin of wine in his paws at all times. His voice was loud and he did his best to assure me that I'd be happy with my new life traveling among plains and forests with the group of gnolls, and that I'd probably be sold to a good home. The jovial, overly optimistic nature of the new jailor could do very little to ease my dread as I was led back to the tent. My escape with Gaerr could basically be considered an impossibility with both of us not only separated, but a new guard in place that was entirely loyal to the gnoll camp. I could only keep hope that Gaerr would figure something out, or that I would somehow be able to play this loudmouth guard.
When we arrived at the tent I sat upon the furs, laying aside my instrument while my new jailor chatted non-stop about his family and the various women and men that he'd put to his bed. In general I tried to ignore him, nodding and smiling when possible to satisfy him, but I became very aware when he suddenly took a deep sniff of the air and chided, "Ah...Smells like sex in this tent...Wonder if Gaerr actually took to having fun with prisoners...Did he songbird? Did he break you in half? Or maybe you wanted it."
I couldn't control the red from rushing to my cheeks, my eyes darting away. I wasn't a shy one, never was, but Gaerr was a special case since I was a human and he was a beast, and so it felt odd having another gnoll point it out so bluntly. He leaned in and gripped at my chin to bring my face to his as he spoke, his breath thick with alcohol, "Ah...So you like gnolls huh? Like monsters songbird? Humans always talk about how loose bards are, a few pieces of gold and all those clothes strip away...Usually I like women, but pretty boys are nice too."
I endured his words, and his tongue as it dragged across my flushed cheek. I thought of using my fat mouth to give him a word or two, but then I felt his claws grazing my chin and saw his fangs from his open mouth and I instead began thinking. Taking a breath, I shivered and though I desired not to, I opened my mouth to receive his tongue. At first the gnoll seemed surprised, his eyes growing wide, but then his hunger began taking over and the kiss began properly. His tongue pushed far too deep into my mouth, twisting and grabbing hold of my own as he forced himself upon me, a twisted warmth spreading through my body. At the same time I gave little muffled moans to encourage him, my hands coiling through the fur at the gnoll's sides. When he pulled his mouth away both of his paw-hands were clutching at my clothing, prepared to rip them apart, but I gave a whine of protest, shutting my eyes and curling in just a bit to make myself seem as small as possible, "Wait...Please I'm still so sore from before...I can promise you my mouth at the very least."
As thought, my new guard was a sympathetic sort, whether it be from the alcohol or his actual nature, his digits trailed up my back and onto my head to push my face down towards his crotch while he laid back, "Fine then...Never thought Gaerr would ruin a willing slave. Be happy though...All of this wine has made me sweet and someday I'll take you much more gently than Gaerr did."
Grateful for my rear not being further broken in, I brought my mouth against the gnoll's sheath, kissing and licking around it as the cock slowly came into sight, one of my hands moving to grip upon it gently. The hand upon my head brought my lips lower and against his balls, his other hand taking the wine skin and pouring some of the sweet stuff upon his heavy orbs and down his taint making a sweet purple trail. With his digits coiling through my hair, he forced my tongue lower and lower, my tongue following the trail of wine until it graced his puckered hole, and there I was forced to drag my tongue against his hole again and again while my hands worked to pleasure my jailer's cock. I desired nothing more than to be in Gaerr's loving embrace instead of being forced to service this beast's hole. Whereas Gaerr would have tried to control himself, tried to ease me into being forced to where he desired, this gnoll only shoved and jerked my head every which way, pressing my mouth against his ass to force my tongue inside. At the same time a sickening feeling of shame and heat rose through my traitorous body. I hated the fact that I enjoyed being pushed around so much, that I was so weak, and yet the beast before me was so delightfully feral that I couldn't help but somewhat enjoy licking at his puckered hole, I even moaned just a bit in earnest as he tugged my hair and brought my mouth up to his cock.
With my lips upon the tip of his cock, he pressed into my mouth slowly, not a single care given as he pushed all of it in except for his knot that rested sweetly against my lips. Even though I gagged and my eyes teared, he still held me down, his hips grinding his cock against my tongue and throat. I wondered where Gaerr was, if he would be coming for me, or if perhaps my new lot in life was as a slave to be passed around various gnolls? To distract myself from the oncoming panic, I focused on the cock in my mouth, the pain that it brought stretching my throat, the heat staining my mouth as I began to try and pull away. I was grateful that he allowed me to pull away, allowed me to breath before forcing himself back in my throat. My hand moved quickly then to work at his balls to try and desperately work him off, to grip and massage them as he began to assault my mouth, his fat maw open as he let out doggish pants and groans throughout the process with his tongue hanging out. Again and again he pounded at my mouth, his knot kissing my lips with every single thrust. There was no struggling, there was no fighting, because I simply wished for it to be over and fighting would only cause more trouble than worth, and so I bore with every single second which seemed like hours to me, until finally I felt the warm stickiness of his cum pouring into my mouth and down my throat. Strange, I had drank the cum of plenty of strangers, for both money and pleasure, and yet as I downed the gnoll's seed, I felt increasingly sick. I almost wanted to wretch as I pulled my mouth away and swallowed the last bits. On the outside I breathed out and smiled just a bit to show that I had enjoyed the jailer's gift, to which he raised his wineskin and lounged upon the furs. On the inside I wished to wash away the dirt from my mouth with Gaerr's taste, with his seed, or with anything else to be honest. It wouldn't weigh too heavily on my mind, no, I couldn't afford to allow myself to be steeped in gloom and dread, soon enough I'd be on the road with Gaerr, singing ballads of the fat drunkard gnoll with a limp dick and breath like a brewery. Soon I'd be rid of this place, I just had to remain hopeful that Gaerr would take me away.
I just needed to bide my time really, and entertain the drunk gnoll that had replaced Gaerr as my jailer. Besides drunken perversion, the gnoll was nice enough. He allowed me to play what I wanted to, and he tried to sing his best along to my tune, but he was distinctly out of key at all times and never made any good progress, but at the very least it was humorous. During the next day he'd bring me food and tell me more stories of all the places he'd seen, and I had the feeling that he was trying to impress me, or make up for the fact that he had forced me into something that I hadn't desired. I noticed that he was missing the wine skin upon his visits and that he'd pamper me with little treats of sweet bread and other things brought from the camp. It was an odd thing, a sympathetic guard and rapist. I wondered if I could twist him around my finger, if I could fool him into thinking that he could get something more out of me again from all of his kindness while I waited for Gaerr to act, and so without shame or contempt, I began to flirt with the gnoll. I'd dress lightly or with nothing at all whenever inside the tent, and I'd ask questions about all his little stories no matter how boring some of them were, and finally when the sun came down upon the second day with him, I asked with my hand trailing up his leg, "So...Surely you must have flasks of something stronger than water? A bit of booze and fun sounds just right about now, I'm damnably bored here without much to do...And you know I love beasts."
The gnoll seemed to freeze for a moment, as if unsure of what he had heard, but rather than questioning what I had said, he left the tent for just a moment before returning with an armful of skins and flasks. There we drank, the two of us having a little contest of it, but while I did take a sip or two of the powerful stuff, my hands were more focused on groping the gnoll's cock to keep him distracted. I urged him on to drink more while I pretended to drink more myself, my soft digits working upon his already stiff cock and before long my lips were upon his cock, suckling upon the tip while stroking the rest, the gnoll moaning in between pulls of his drink. Whenever I pulled away I complimented his strength, his endurance and so much more, and so he continued to drink as if to show of to a pretty girl that he could powerful. When he slowed down I breathed out against his cock, "Such a powerful beast...Much stronger than Gaerr...He could never handle his alcohol as well." To myself it sounded stupid, it sounded far too simple to work, and yet the gnoll doubled his efforts to do what he thought was impressing me, while my mouth worked ever faster upon his cock. Already the jailor was too drunk to thrust his hips and so I worked his cock deeper and deeper into my mouth, and perhaps I got just a bit too into the action, for even while the gnoll slowly slimped into an drunken slumber, my mouth continued to milk his cock until I felt warmth spread across my tongue and throat. Standing and wiping my mouth I spat what I had in my mouth upon his chest and dusted my hands off. Taking my cloak, my lute and my pouch of gold I leaned to give him a kiss on the head and whisper, "You're certainly more than Gaerr will ever be...More foolish and more gullible." And with that I slipped out of the tent into the night, just as a hooded in full leathers stepped in sight with crossbow in paw.
Seeing the hooded gnoll I leapt like a frightened mouse and brought up my lute to take a swing before the gnoll quickly pulled back his hood. My heart both sank and rose all in one motion, there stood Gaerr looking ready for battle. As I lowered my makeshift weapon he approached and spoke quietly, and quickly, "How did you get loose?"
Looking from the tent to Gaerr I shrugged as the sound of muffled snores could be heard from within, "I made him feel pretty..."
Gaerr felt over my cheek with a powerful hand, a sudden possessive tone taking him, "He didn't harm you did he?"
Even feeling his grip tighten upon my cheek, a hand of mine moved to touch over top of his to soothe, "Shhh...He did nothing to me, besides Gaerr, we should be leaving, not dwelling on this past of ours. We'll escape to the city and lose ourselves there, then we'll decide where to go, and what to do with our life."
Gaerr bristled at this, but seemed placated enough, his touch upon my cheek growing soft again before he slipped away to begin walking through the camp. I followed silently. It felt odd, almost wrong how quiet it was as we slipped through dark portions of the camp. I wondered where all the guards had gone? There were so many gnolls and that leader seemed far too suspicious, certainly he must have set guards to make sure nobody got in, or out, so where were they? Soon enough I had my answer as I nearly tripped over the still corpse of a gnoll with a bolt in his back. I winced and held my stomach from the sight of death before me. Gaerr paused only to kneel and take the crossbow and quiver from the corpse, quietly handing it to me. The corpse was unnerving enough and robbing it seemed a bit much, but as I slung my lute over my shoulder and grasped the crossbow, the heavy wood in my hands afforded me some feeling of safety to ease the panic that had been slowly growing from within. As we continued on I noticed that Gaerr had made a trail of bodies for us to follow, a silent trail of death that brought me a bit closer to madness with every single bloody body I saw. Gaerr may have been smaller than most other gnolls, but he was murder incarnate to have been able to do all of this without notice. He'd certainly be the most dangerous bard I'd ever taught or met. Every few steps we stopped, Gaerr's ears twitching every which way to listen in on our surroundings before we continued on. My heart began racing as we edged further and further away from the camp, my lips dry and my eyes constantly blinking. Perhaps I would be less nervous if we had horses to keep us far ahead of anyone who might follow us, and certainly that scar eyed gnoll would be giving chase after finding Gaerr's trail of death.
The city itself wasn't too far from the gnoll camp, the gates open at night with a post of guards in armor there. Though they eyed our sheathed weaponry, they hailed us in as soon as I dropped a handful of gold coins into his grubby hands. I had no care for the gold that the gnolls had given me, it was gold with a fairly terrible memory attached to it, so the majority of it could burn in the deepest hells for all I cared along with the gnoll that had tried to buy me, but rather than that we tirelessly went through the city looking for open shops to purchase a few supplies to be on our way. Luckily we had caught a night market where plenty of stalls were set up with oil lamps and various curiosities, some of which seemed awfully illegal. Gaerr and I picked what we could carry and continued to travel through the city with silent panic bouncing between us. Though neither of us said a word, I could feel the tension, the worry and anxiety in the air. Even though the sun was only starting to come up, Terrak could have already woken up to his surprise of betrayal and death within the camp and set off after the two. We needed a quick exit with some strong horses that could carry a few saddlebags, and we needed them without much question.
As we approached the stables just outside of the furthest city gate from the gnoll encampment, an old man with plenty of muscle from handling animals and a bald head approached us, hand gripping onto a dagger at his belt. As we neared him, we heard his voice cut through the evening, "You'll spook the horses beast, get y'self out of here."
Exasperated I brought out the last bits of coin I had left from greasing palms and buying supplies to show to the old man, "We have gold, two horses, powerful. We need them now and not later sir, if it would please you." I didn't feel like being diplomatic with the old man, I just wanted to get our horses and leave without trouble, but that turned out to be a problem.
The old man spat at the ground and drew his dagger, "I don't sell to his kind here, and no amount of coin is gonna move me. Now move before I call the guard."
Frustrated and feeling the heat return to my cheeks I thought of some choice words to try and convince the old man that we had a good cause to be so quick, but Gaerr was the first to snap. He dropped his bags and pulled his crossbow and fired a bolt into the man's ankle, the old man collapsing with a pained gasp, dropping his dagger in the process.
Panic took over as I stood there wide eyed and mouthed, "Gaerr you...We can't just kill people! Certainly we are in a rush, yes, I understand this, but he is an innocent man, albeit he deserves what he gets for pulling a knife on us and showing some serious prejudice, but still, Gaerr...Gaerr?"
The gnoll was already stepping out of the stables with two powerful horses that were already saddled and ready to leave. While I had been babbling incoherently, the gnoll had been taking action and even as I got onto the horse I babbled along, "Gaerr please, now we're going to steal? The man may need help, we should at least try and call the guards for him before leaving? Shouldn't we?"
When were both saddled and starting our canter onto the beaten road, Gaerr finally replied, "We needed to leave quick...Besides, I only legged him. He'll be fine when someone checks on him...He also deserved it for pulling a knife on you. Right now I'd rather not lose you."
That certainly silenced me. He had been more upset that the man pulled a knife on me, rather than concerned about his own safety. I wondered why that was the case? Still, Gaerr was right, we needed to leave quickly and without interruption, I could be guilty about it later. As we trotted along on the road I tried to distract my maddened mind with thoughts of where we would even go. I had friends towards the mountains where the kobolds and dwarves lived, many friends at that. I wasn't sure how they'd feel about me bringing a gnoll to their doorstep, but it was either that or risk the elven lands where I had insulted some few kings and queens there.
Telling Gaerr of my plan he snorted, "Maybe there I can buy a new lute...I forgot mine."
I had to smile just a bit at that, "Despite what people say, dwarves and kobolds make wonderful instruments, much sturdier than the elven sort."
Gaerr grinned, "Good...I'll need something sturdy so these hands of mine won't break them...As I broke you."
My cheeks turned red, but I focused on the road. I don't think love making would be wise until we were safe underneath a roof and perhaps with the protection of several friends willing to dive at my side. Though the grin stayed upon Gaerr's face, I could see the way his eyes darted from side to side as if to check for any pursuers. What a fun journey this would be if not just a bit stressful.