Jadis was lost in thought as she entered through the front door to Fortune’s Favored headquarters. Her mind was distracted by the information Sholto had given her on Fetches that might be willing to have children with her. It was a weird situation, basically being given a matchmaking list of women with compatible personalities by her patron god. Weird enough that she was considering asking Eir if she would be willing to perform an oracle ritual so she could talk to the mischievous deity directly. They were overdue for their next ritual by a week since they had been saving it in case of another emergency situation, but now Jadis was seriously contemplating using the spell to see if D was trying to screw with her or if he was actually trying to help. Her connection to Lyssandria, however, seemed to indicate the list was legitimate. At least, the familiar yet alien gut feeling she got when she focused on the suggested names was positive.
Being so distracted, Jadis nearly missed it when several long black tentacles wrapped around her Syd self in a surprise ambush.
“Welcome… Back…”
“Hey Alex,” Syd laughed as the Demon gently dropped onto her from above the doorway and wrapped her up in a multitude of limbs. “How was your day?”
“I baked… Cookies…”
“Nice!” Syd exclaimed before giving her demonic lover a loving kiss. “Your last batch was pretty good. Hardly any eggshells. I’m sure these will taste great.”
“They are… Sweet…”
“Just like you,” Syd agreed before placing a hand on Alex’s round belly. “And our little Succubus. How is she? Feel anything moving today?”
“Yes…” Alex nodded as she placed one of her hands next to Syd’s. “She kicked… Kerr’s head…”
“That’s our girl,” Syd laughed as she pressed a kiss to Alex’s belly.
As Syd happily piled attention onto her favorite Demon and their unborn child, Jay headed towards the back of the main hall while Dys stopped at the reception desk that had been set up for Gunnar. The large, three-story hall of the building had been left as an open space, but they had set up a desk as well as a nice half wall and some comfortable chairs in the area right in front of the main door so that there was somewhere for visitors to be greeted in an orderly fashion.
Gunnar was, as always, behind his desk, busily scratching away at papers with a feathered quill. Jadis honestly wasn’t sure what the elf worked on when it came to paperwork, but Aila generally handled all of more practical, business-type assignments that were handed out, so she didn’t ask or interfere. She trusted that Aila had given him an appropriate task and that the man knew what he was doing.
“Hey Gunny! Anything I need to know about?”
“You have three letters,” the serious elf answered as he passed the unopened documents to her with his magically powered false arm. “One is from Lady Brunholt and the other two are both from Sir Wilhelm.”
Dys smiled at the two letters that had come from the Hero. Ever since they had met during the disastrous Demon attack on Eldingholt, she and the Hero had been writing letters to each other. They were mostly for the sake of keeping track of important events that their parties had been involved with, but they were also partly because she and her companions got along reasonably well with Wilhelm and his own companions. They were good people, and Jadis liked hearing about how they were doing.
The letter from Lady Brunholt was unexpected. While Jadis had developed a sort of truce with Elodie Brunholt, she wasn’t exactly friends with the woman. Plus, Jadis still hated her father’s guts, and she was pretty sure that General Egilhard felt the same way. All that was to say, Jadis wasn’t exactly social with the Brunholt family, so the fact that the lady had sent her a letter caused some suspicion to rise in Jadis’ hearts.
“We also received the package of goods you ordered for Sabina just an hour ago,” Gunnar informed her. “I believe she has already absconded with them to her workshop.”
“Naturally,” Dys smirked. “Well, let me know if anything crazy happens.”
“Of course,” the elf nodded once before calmly returning to his paperwork.
While Dys had been talking with Gunnar, Jay had been making her way through the large hall to the kitchen. Ducking her head low as she entered the warm workspace, she was greeted by the delicious smell of Hans’ cooking.
A dozen meat pies had been piled high, ready to be carried out to the main hall so that the whole mercenary company could be fed. Even as Jay watched, the mustachioed man was pulling out even more of his savory pastries from one of the several ovens they had installed in the large kitchen. Other than the meat pies waiting to be served, Jadis noticed the cookies that were laid out on one of the tables that Alex had told her she had baked.
All one thousand of them.
At least, that was Jadis’ best guess at the numbers. The pile of cookies was massive, and there had to be enough there to feed an army barracks. Way more than Jadis thought her company could reasonably eat, even considering her own extra-large appetite.
“Hans,” Jay nodded at the man as she passed through the kitchen to reach the back door.
The man grunted and nodded at her, though he never took his eyes off of his work. Hans truly was a perfectionist when it came to his pies.
Back outside, Jay crossed the large storage yard to reach the forge and workshop that had been built for her half-elf lover. Even before she reached the large doors of the building, she could hear the sound of a hammer striking metal, indicating that Sabina and her assistants were hard at work.
Inside, Jay found what she expected. Sabina was hammering away at some piece of red-hot metal while her young assistant, Chace, held the piece in place with a pair of iron tongs. The orc boy had shown a talent for metalworking early on in his employment and had become a sort of smithing apprentice to the excitable enchanter. They weren’t the only ones in the workshop, though.
Dexter and Lon, the young twin boys, were busily pumping the huge bellows that kept the furnace roaring. The pulley and bellows system was so big that the pair took turns jumping on and off the two sides of the device, using their weight to power the apparatus.
Then there was Violetta. The short purple woman was off to one side, stirring a large clay crucible that was also being heated by the forge. Jadis wasn’t sure what that was for, but she was fairly certain that the cauldron’s contents had something to do with Sabina’s enchantments. Violetta had been far more interested in learning about enchanting than any other skill, so she was usually the one to act as Sabina’s primary assistant in that area.
“Dinner’s almost ready!” Jay shouted over the noise of the forge. “Find a stopping point!”
“Jay!” Sabina shouted back, somehow knowing which of Jadis’ bodies she was talking to with an accuracy that no one else could match. “We’re almost done, but can you help Aila with that cloth over there? Once we’re done with this piece and she’s done with that we can call it quits for the day!”
“Sure thing,” Jay said as she headed in the direction Sabina had indicated.
Jadis hadn’t realized that Aila was in the workshop as well, which she felt was forgivable considering the clutter filling the place. While Sabina wasn’t exactly disorganized, she did have a tendency to cram as much stuff into one place as she possibly could since she was constantly working on multiple projects at the same time. That meant the workshop was, despite being twice as large as the communal workshop that Sabina had shared back in Far Felsen with a multitude of other smiths, crowded to the point that Jadis had some trouble maneuvering through the limited walking space.
“There you are,” Jay grinned down at her redheaded lover as she turned the corner around a large construct of wood and wool cloth. “Helping the mad inventor with her insidious plans?”
“Sabina is innocent of any ill intent,” Aila commented dryly as she painted a section of the cloth with a black, paint-like substance that smelled somewhat like glue. “You are the one who harbors sinister machinations if anyone does around here.”
“What a thing to say to the mother of your child,” Jay gasped with mock indignation. “You cut me to my core!”
“You are the one who insisted we color this death trap black as ink. It’s somewhat ominous, you have to—ah!”
Aila’s words were interrupted by Jay wrapping her hands around her waist and lifting her high into the air. Any further exclamations were also cut off as Jay soundly kissed her blue-eyed lover on the lips. She particularly enjoyed the way the stern mage melted into her, readily deepening the kiss on her own initiative.
“And how’s our little arch-mage in the making?” Jay asked once she broke free of Aila’s kiss.
“Exactly the same as the last time you asked,” Aila answered breathlessly with cheeks flushed red. “She’s not going to change at all until I’m ready.”
“Good!” Jay chirped before lifting Aila slightly higher. “And you better make sure you stay nice and healthy for as long as you’re in there.”
Jay’s words were directed at the child inside of Aila’s belly, followed by a loving kiss.
Aila huffed indignantly at Jay’s actions, of course, but Jadis didn’t care. She couldn’t help her goofy behavior. Every time she thought about how any of her lovers were pregnant with their child, Jadis couldn’t help but feel giddy with happiness.
“Put me down so I can finish this section, please,” Aila ordered. “You’re supposed to be helping me, not hindering.”
Laughing, Jay set the arcanist down and picked up an extra paint brush to help Aila with her task. As they soaked the wool fabric with the alchemical concoction, Aila filled Jadis in on the various things that had happened around the headquarters that day. Jadis happily listened to the report, part of her mind occupied by taking in the information while another part couldn’t help but wander.
With Bertha’s announcement that Aila had successfully conceived a baby girl three days ago, the number of babies sired by Jadis had officially reached seven. Alex had been first with her Succubus offspring, followed by Kerr and her twin boys. Bridget had conceived next, with her pregnancy confirmed to be a dual-sex, or futanari. Thea had been after that, her unborn child confirmed as a girl, and Sabina after her with the conception of another futanari. Aila had been the most recent to conceive, this time another girl, and Jadis was over the moon with joy. At times, it was all a little overwhelming to think about, since seven kids was a lot to have at once, but the pressure was somewhat relieved by the fact that she had wonderfully intelligent and capable partners who would all help and support her and each other through their pregnancies and the life that came after. It also didn’t hurt that Alex was the only one in the group who wasn’t pausing their pregnancy. Everyone else had availed themselves of Bertha’s ritual as soon as the midwife was able to perform it on them.
With Aila now pregnant, that meant that the only two of Jadis’ lovers left who still had yet to conceive were Eir and Sorcha. Jadis had yet to become pregnant yet, either, which was something that she was supposed to do at some point, but she hadn’t been too focused on that part. In truth, now that Aila had conceived, Jadis’ biggest focus was on getting Eir with child.
Her elven lover had not shown even a hint of envy the entire time their group had stayed in Eldingholt. Eir was supportive of all of her fellow “wives” and had only ever showered the women with love and praise. However, Eir had been the one who wanted to carry Jadis’ babies the most. More than anything else, Jadis knew that her beautiful priestess wanted a child. Yet so far, all attempts had been unsuccessful. Jadis had made sure that her own fertility had been turned up to maximum for every opportunity they took to make love, and Eir had even started receiving help from some of the other priestesses of Lyssandria with fertility rituals. Even some priestesses of Ulya had gotten involved, offering their own magical aid. Still, nothing.
Vita, High Priestess of Ulya, had privately assured Jadis that the lack of success wasn’t anything to be worried about. Elves didn’t procreate as fast or as easily as other races, and Eir was also very young for an elf. While sexually mature, elves around Eir’s age often found it harder to become pregnant compared to those elves who were in their seventies or eighties. The motherly Lares had told her that even with all the added help, it wasn’t shocking that Eir hadn’t yet conceived. It just took time.
Jadis had discussed all of this with Eir as well, and of course the elf had evinced no sign of concern or disappointment before or since. Still, Jadis knew her priestess. Eir was too nice to ever complain, but it had to sting that everyone else was getting pregnant while she wasn’t.
At least Sorcha was likely to stay without child for a long while. As much as Jadis would be happy to give her goblin lover a baby, Sorcha was in no rush. Mostly her reserve had to do with the fact that Jadis had yet to consummate their relationship in any way other than Sorcha fucking her with a magically grown goblin dick. The size difference between the two of them was a definite barrier to entry. So, looking at the silver lining, Sorcha’s reluctancy to be impregnated meant that Eir wasn’t left as the last of the harem to have a baby. Jadis was sure that Eir would never admit it, not even to herself, but not being the last was likely a comfort.
Putting the finishing touches on the wool cloth, Jay and Aila wrapped up around the same time as Sabina and her workshop helpers finished with their tasks. As they all made their way out of the workshop and to the main building of the headquarters, Jay saw that Sabina was bringing a metal contraption of some kind with her.
“What have you got there?” Jay asked while motioning with one hand at the collection of complicated-looking metal bits.
“It’s a surprise,” Sabina answered distractedly as she focused on one moving joint. “Though I think I’m going to have to get some help from Doru and maybe some of his smithing priests because I can’t quite get this one part to work right. It’s so frustrating because I can see what I want and I just can’t quite make it work the way I see it in my head so I must be missing something but I don’t know what it is and…”
Sabina continued to mumble to herself as they all entered the headquarters and headed for the main hall where dinner was being served. Since both Dys and Syd had been inside the whole time, Jadis had been able to coordinate everything while her Jay self had herded the workers from their workshop. Most of the group was already there and waiting, though not everyone. Notably, Jadis saw that Tegwyn, Nevan, and Orla hadn’t come back to the company building yet. That wasn’t too surprising, since they had left the city on a short-range mission with the rest of the new members of Fortune’s Favored that morning. Their task of hunting down a potential Demon sighting at a nearby town was the kind of assignment that could either be quick and see them back that night or could take a while and require an overnight stay in the town. Either way, Jadis wasn’t too worried to see the seven-person group still absent. They were trained professionals, for the most part, and Jadis had confidence that they would do well on their first solo mission.
As soon as Jay entered the hall, she was completely immersed in the comforting conversations filling the air.
“Who wants butter?” Sorcha asked the table as she set down a bowl filled with whipped and fragrant-smelling butter. “I mixed in some fresh herbs from my garden.”
“Nice,” Bridget smiled in delight as she took a deep whiff of the treat. “You make this so much better than my mother. She always uses too much sage.”
“Chace, did your father receive my letter?” Eir asked the orc boy as he reached for a dinner roll.
“Uh, yes ma’am,” the boy answered the beautiful elf while shyly looking down at the table. “He said that he would talk it over with the others, and that they would meet with your father next week.”
“Wonderful,” Eir flashed the young man a brilliant smile. “I do hope an arrangement can be made that benefits us all.”
“Did you see that cavalry squad ride through the north gate?” Kerr asked Thea as she cut into her meat pie with a fork. “I heard they were all beat to shit. Came from the northern border.”
“They w—were,” Thea nodded quietly as she poured some tea into a glass for the therion. “I, ah, saw them when I wa—was with B—Bridget. They were, ah, rough.”
“Sabina, no experiments at the table,” Aila scolded the half-elf. “Put it aside while we eat, please.”
“Here, I’ll take it for you,” Violetta quickly volunteered as she took the mess of steel from the pouting smith.
“But I think I figured out my mistake!” Sabina whined. “Can’t I just—”
“No,” Aila commanded with imperial power. “Also, Jay, you still need to remove your armor.”
“What, in front of Hans?” Jay teased.
“Jadis…”
“Going, going,” Jay laughed.
Her other selves had removed their armor already, so it was just her Jay self who still needed to get out of the heavy plate armor. Taking advantage of the large open space of the main hall, Jay used her strength to simply leap up to the third-floor balcony rather than take the stairs. Using her immense Agility attribute to her advantage, she stripped off her armor at an inhuman speed and placed it on one of the three custom-made armor stands inside the shared bedroom that took up the entirety of the top floor of the building. Walking back out to the balcony a few moments later, Jay smiled down at the scene below her.
Originally, Jadis had thought that the dining area of the main hall would just have a bunch of smaller tables in it where the various members of the company could sit and eat at their leisure. Separate tables so that different people could have some privacy, if they wanted it. As it turned out, no one wanted that privacy. All the tables had been shoved together after only a few days and now everyone sat together at one large, winding table that took up much of the space. It was an odd, mismatched kind of gathering, but Jadis liked it. The buzz of many different conversations going on at once filled her with a warm glow.
As Jay let herself drop from the third floor and moved to take her spot at the table amidst friends and family, a knock echoed at the front door.
“I’ll get it,” Jay told the others before anyone else could get up.
Approaching the door, Jadis felt a strange sense of déjà vu. Something about the experience was making her think that she had done something just like this in recent memory, though she wasn’t sure when. Throwing open the door, any thoughts of repeating experiences left Jadis as she saw the woman waiting on the other side.
“Hello Jadis,” Severina said with a small smile and tilt of her head.
“Hey Sev,” Jay grinned at the Seraphim, knowing full well that Severina hated the nickname Jadis had bestowed upon her. “Are you joining us for dinner again tonight?”
“I was hoping to, yes,” the paladin said while primly ignoring Jay’s attempt at teasing her. “I also have a small list of further candidates that I wanted to discuss with you. There have been a few Seraphim who have been pulled back from the front lines on a temporary leave and I thought—”
“Oh come on,” Jay sighed as she leaned against the door frame and crossed her arms. “Do we have to play matchmaker tonight? I already had Sholto shove a list of Fetch onto me, apparently given to him straight from D. I don’t need more talk like that right now.”
Jay noticed that Severina’s cross shaped pupils widened in surprise at the information, though the Seraphim otherwise did a good job of keeping her composure. It was only thanks to weeks of being around the woman that Jadis had gained the proficiency necessary to read the woman’s small and nearly imperceptible tells. Something about what Jay had just said had definitely bothered the paladin. Or had at least caused a spike of emotion in her.
“Besides,” Jay blithely continued, “Out of all the Seraphim you’ve tried to set me up with so far, the only one I have any interest in is standing right in front of me. When are we going to talk more about that possibility?”
“How about tonight, after dinner?” Severina answered evenly.
“Okay, come on—wait. What?”
“Let’s talk about us. Tonight,” Severina said, the calm of her voice doing nothing to stop Jadis’ own heartrates from speeding up. “Since you are, as you just said, interested.”
“Really?" Jay asked, unable to keep the surprise out of her voice, or the grin from her lips. “Are you interested?”
Jadis had been teasing Severina for weeks now, but she had halfway assumed that teasing was as far as it would ever go. Now that Severina was suddenly expressing a willingness to openly engage, Jadis almost didn’t believe it.
“I… I am,” Severina said, the hesitation in her voice doing more to convince Jadis than the words themselves. “I—Well, I have never been opposed to that option. I have simply been… exploring all other possibilities.”
“Right,” Jay grinned widely as she leaned down slightly towards the smaller woman. “Exploring Possibilities sounds like a good excuse to me, too. Definitely go with that if anyone like Eadgar or Kestil asks.”
“You are so maddeningly frustrating,” Severina scowled up at her.
“Thanks,” Jay winked. “I like you, too.”
“Hey!” Kerr shouted from the table, cutting off whatever response Severina was going to shoot back. “Whether you flirt or fuck, I don’t care! Just shut the damn door! It’s fucking cold!”
“Come on in,” Jay stepped aside to allow the now blushing Seraphim entrance. “And let’s talk.”
“Yes. Talk,” Severina said, though her eyes couldn’t quite meet Jay’s gaze. “Let’s… talk.”
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