The Nekromancer - 47. Chapter 47

The body fell, toppling over the side of the bridge. Jeremy stared at the dwarf as he dropped beneath the clouds.

"I do believe that is a… rather violent and disturbing win for Jakun. Who wants a drink?" Jeremy asked, looking at the catfolk.

Amnor Sen grunted, looking at Jakun sadly. The amurrun met his gaze, a darkness in his eyes. Shaking his head, Amnor Sen turned away.

Jeremy turned toward Kurst, an inquisitive look on his face.

“Why would the gun explode like that though?”

The gnome was looking over the edge of the bridge sorrowfully.

“You’re not supposed to throw them. The powder spilled and went off wrong,” he replied with a sigh. “If… if you’ll excuse me, I need to take care of things here.”

"I'll be finishing our shirts and then we are leaving this city. We've caused too many problems as it is. No wonder this place hates adventurers…" Amnor Sen added, frowning at Jeremy.

"But Jakun is a man now, with his first duel behind him. We should celebrate!" Jeremy said, wrapping an arm around the catfolk's shoulder. "At least a trip to the brothel. We wanted to do that for him anyway."

"Fine. I'll finish the work and you and Jakun can go get drunk and fuck like rabbits," Amnor Sen snapped as they left the bridge.

"You heard the elf," Jeremy snorted, pushing a bottle into Jakun's hand. "Start drinking!"

"I heard anger," Jakun frowned.

"Eh. He's just mad you killed the dwarf. That was the rule of the duel. You did good. Maybe a little less maniacal laughter next time."

"There won't be a next time."

"Aw, where's the fun in that? Don't worry Amnor Sen, we'll be back by five tonight, and I'll help with the shirts," Jeremy added.

The elf huffed as they split, Jakun and Jeremy heading toward a darker district of the city.

"I found a tavern here yesterday. Their mead isn't the best, but their ale is decent. Unless you want to visit the brothel first. They usually have a bathhouse attached. You are… remarkably bloody. Who knew that much blood could come from a head?"

Jakun darted away suddenly, retching in an alley. Jeremy sighed quietly, waiting for the cat to finish.

"Yeah. You killed two men over the last three days. It's okay, you'll get used to it, especially if you come with us to Absalom. And you should," the human continued.

"Please… for the love of the gods… please shut up…"

Grunting abruptly, Jeremy nodded, patting the amurrun's back gently.

"The brothel isn't far either," he said, pointing down the street at a small building. "You can start there. The tavern is next door. I'll be waiting for you, okay?"

"But I don't know-"

"It's easy enough. They ask what you want, you ask what do they have. If it's a tiefling, say yes. If it's a gnome, say no. Way too small… trust me."

He paused for a moment, thinking.

"If they have twins, come get me."

"Amnor Sen would let you have sex with them?"

"Yeah, as long as he was invited. We're always talking about twins. Or maybe it's a joke for him… ah well, easy enough to ask."

Pushing the catfolk toward the brothel, the cleric nodded.

"Don't worry about diseases. Cayden Cailean will protect you," he added, watching Jakun push into the brothel.

The cleric really wanted to follow, but he hadn't been in a brothel since meeting Amnor Sen. And that wasn't changing today. Well… he didn't expect it to change.

Turning toward the tavern, Jeremy blinked at the sight of a bow being stained by a dwarf in his shop.

"Hey, that's a nice piece of work," he said, wandering over.

"Thanks. I'm trying to get it done before nightfall."

"My husband works with wood. He's never been able to learn bows though."

"They're actually fairly simple. Get a beam, cut it to size, flatten the limbs while providing for a handgrip, and string it."

"Huh. Even I could do that…"

"Well, maybe it is a little more complicated than that," the dwarf frowned. "You an archer?"

"No, but my friend is. Well, a learning archer."

"Mmm. Perhaps he would be interested in a Bow? Masterfully crafted, a heavy weight, smooth draw."

"He might be more interested in a crossbow to be honest. He is more of a mage."

"Oh? Well I do have a nice steel bow mounted on a walnut stock, if he prefers."

"I'll have to ask him," Jeremy said, stepping away. "I'll talk to you in a bit. How late are you open?"

"Four bells. But I open tomorrow at eight."

"We might be back then," Jeremy smiled. "He did lose his old bow to a dragon."

"A dragon?! By the gods… you'll have to tell me what that was like sometime," the dwarf said in amazement.

"Cold and painful," Jeremy shrugged. "That's about all I can say, without a drink."

"Hmm… tell you what, I want to hear this story. Why don't I buy you a drink? I want to take a quick break anyway. It's not like anyone stops by. Most of my stuff goes to the guard."

"It sounds like a deal to me," Jeremy grinned, as the dwarf hung the bow to dry. "My friend should join us in about an hour. He won't be long."

"Oh? First time?" the dwarf smirked.

"Yes. He's celebrating winning a duel too."

"You two must lead very exciting lives."

"You don't know the half of it," Jeremy chuckled as they headed to the tavern.

Ordering a pair of ales, the two sat across from each other at a table.

"May the god of merriment smile upon our drinking," Jeremy toasted before gulping at the ale. "So. Ivris… I swear he's undead. He got shot in the eye and stabbed in the gut and he's still not dead. We fought him in Geb. Imagine it, you're going through a normal autumn evening, banging your husband. And you suddenly hear this thunderous roar, like the gods themselves are at the door to your room…"

The dwarf's eyes steadily grew as he listened. Another pair of ales was ordered, and another, Jeremy soon moving into the realm of plain fantasy, describing Ivris as a two headed ravener that ate small children. For all the cleric knew, it was true. He didn't know the beast's feeding habits.

"We were near frozen solid until Cayden Cailean warmed my belly and gave me the fire to fight back. I lured the massive airship of a dragon down, and he landed straight on my blade and still wouldn't die! He's still out there to this day, plotting his revenge against me," Jeremy hiccoughed.

"By the gods. You are a very unlucky human," the dwarf laughed in wonder.

"It's all the cat's fault. But we love him anyway…"

The man drained another ale, swaying slightly.

"Fuck. I wish Amnor Sen was here."