"What'ss thiss?" came a voice, floating through the pre-dawn light like a dark harbinger to what was hiding in the brush. Kor stiffened, his smirk suddenly gone. There was a rustle, sending more small pebbles clattering down the hillside and the boughs of the brush parted. What came for them was something far darker than the Drow that stood on the banks of the small stream or the name that had been cast at him as a curse.
Rothe was something between a man and a lizard. He was humanoid in shape, but little else. His skin was covered in the wrinkled cracks of a leather hide, tough and thick. It was a greenish cast, though in the early morning light everything seemed to be drowned in grey hues. His fingers ended in sharp claws, his eyes glittering yellow with slitted pupils. His tongue flicked out as he tasted them on the wind, the forked ends wavering. Teeth, nearly as lemon-colored as his eyes, were exposed. They were like light triangles that glowed as they caught what little light there was to be had. His feet scraped along the stone as he walked, and above all, he was naked. A long, thick tail waved slowly behind him, to balance the strangely proportioned body, and as it slid along the ground, more stones were sent scattering to the sides and down to Kor's feet.
"This is none of your business," Kor said, with a venom that made Rothe tilt his head to the side and look at the scene with renewed interest.
"Perhapss..." he conceded, as he came closer still. "But whatever you leave of her, I want." That forked tongue came slithering out, to pass over the strange blunted features of his face, as if he regarded the entire thing as his lips. The movement of his tongue at least distracted Kor for a moment from the engorging that was happening between Rothe's legs. He wondered for a moment what the weremonitor could be thinking, but he didn't have long to contemplate it.
"And I want to watch."
"She's mine. All of her." Kor stated simply, the bile rising in his throat. Managing to keep from being ill was accomplished only through the thought that he at least got what he wanted. His presence had drawn out one of the Tagnik'zur brothers. All he needed to do was get in close enough, and he would have a chance to exploit his rare knowledge. A smile again came to his face when he thought of what he would do this morning, with everything he needed at his disposal.
Ignoring Rothe's angry arguments about his stingy nature, Kor let the shadows melt around him again. He moved like the lightning, taking advantage of what night they had left to move in an instant into the water, his hands reaching for Karuka the moment he reappeared. This time he was kinder, taking her under an arm to pull her against his chest. She was beautiful, her body tightened by the icy water into peaks that were delightful to look at, her hair plastered against her wet skin. He could just make out the goosebumps along her arms.
"It's better if you close your eyes," he whispered, letting his rough voice reach her ears only. Somehow, he knew that taking her with him into the darkness would be sweeter than it had ever been before, and not just with the methods of touch he used to draw her into the spell. Leaning down his head, he pressed his lips to hers. She tasted of spice, of things bold and exotic, but before he had the chance to fully explore that taste, the shadows came, and they were enveloped in darkness.
They reappeared out of the stream, near to the mouth of the cave. They were closer now to Rothe than Kor had expected, but it didn't matter. He moved Karuka into the mouth of a smaller hollow than they'd spent the night in, shielding it's entrance with his body. His smile flashed far whiter than Rothe's had, and holding out his hand to the lizard man, he spoke what could very well be his famous last words.
"If you want her, you'll have to take me down first."
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