Book 2 Chapter 18: Cliches

Michael was just curious, at least that was the reasoning he gave before he, Ollie, Marcus, and Pyotr made their way down the street in their cleanest sets of clothes. Davi, obviously, was otherwise occupied with Francesca, though there was just the smallest bit of regret in his eyes as he watched the rest of them go. The Velvet Embrace was a surprisingly nice brick building toward the center of town with a sign of a feminine hand clutching fabric that had been carved with great artistry. The wood of it actually had the appearance of fabric which was very impressive. “I thought we were trying to be smart with money,” said Michael as they walked. “Easy for someone who's already gotten laid since we got here,” said Marcus. “We do need to save money, but I can’t think of anything better to spend it on. Who knows what opportunities we’ll get once we find a mercenary company to sign up with? Best to get it while we can.” Michael couldn’t find fault in his logic or perhaps he didn’t want to. He wasn’t entirely sure he’d partake, but he wasn’t against it. His new gods didn’t seem to have anything against a roll in the hay based on the lack of changes in the gentle murmuring he was receiving from them on a regular basis. Just repetitions of godseeker~pilgrim~haha et cetera. If he chose not to partake, they did serve wine and he was certain there would be some pleasant sights to see at the very least. He felt that his libido was no longer in the same overdrive it had been when they’d first left the academy. Possibly the distance from the drugs they’d given him, though the others hadn’t stopped being red-blooded Earth males. Maybe it was like Marcus said, and it was because he’d already had a taste. There was a gruff looking man at the entrance who looked them over. He had some deep scars across his face, and arms as thick as his head. “You got coin?” He asked. Marcus held up a small pouch that he shook lightly to make it jingle. The man nodded. “Don’t touch without permission, don’t start any trouble, don’t hurt any of the girls or I’ll break your legs. Got it?” They all nodded. “Alright then, go on in.” They stepped inside and Michael’s nose was immediately filled with the scent of strong perfume. It was something floral and sweet, but he couldn’t pinpoint it, his nose was too different from the one he’d once had and there were far too many plants and smells in this new worlds he’d had yet to experience. The walls had bright fabrics nailed to them and the floor that they were on was filled with small booths with large couches. He didn’t notice any of that at first though, he was too busy staring at all the girls. They were all wearing low cut revealing gowns or extraordinarily tight corsets. Most of them had their hair down, but a few had it in up-doos that framed their faces well. He also saw elaborate makeup on several of them that he found very attractive. He’d had a number of friends who always said they were most attracted to women when they were at their most comfortable. They liked a woman in sweats and no makeup with their hair in a messy bun. Michael was the opposite. He liked when a woman was done up in her fanciest outfit with heavy makeup and high heels. Effort was sexy, especially when it was to his benefit. Sara had had the same opinion, and that’s when he’d gone to the gym up until he couldn’t anymore, and she’d been wearing lipstick the last time he’d seen her and held her hand, even with everything else going on. He hoped he was buried with a cherry red impression of her lips on his cheek. Ollie gave him a firm pat on the back, breaking his train of thought. “It’s going to be good to have a root again.” “A root?” Michael shook his head with a grimace. “Australians really are savages.” The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. “I intend to be pretty savage alright,” he replied with a wink. They made their way over to one of the couches and after just a few moments a short, curvaceous woman with dark curly hair cut short and emerald eyes approached them from behind, her hand gently caressing the back of Michael’s neck as she rounded the couch. He had to keep himself from shivering. “Would you boys like something to drink? Some wine?” “I’d be more interested in you than the wine,” said Marcus with a smile. “I can’t blame you,” said the woman with a wink and a grin, “but I’m just a drink girl for the night. Don’t you worry though, there’ll be more girls here soon. They just want to look their best for you .” “Well I can appreciate that. I’ll take some wine. Guys?” They all nodded. “I’ll be right back with those for you,” she said and walked away toward the bar, making sure they could see her every step and the exaggerated swagger of her hips. “Jesus. She reminds me of home,” said Marcus with a wide smile on his face. “Eh, too much meat for me, friend,” replied Pyotr. Ollie was leaning halfway off the couch to stare at some other women walking near them, practically drooling as they passed by. “I’m going to be honest. I’m not feeling too picky,” he said as he drew himself back onto the couch. The girl returned with their wine, masterfully holding all four glasses and handing them each to them, managing to have her hand gently brush against theirs as she did so. As she stepped back, she raised an eyebrow. “Oh, looks like the girls are ready for you.” She stepped away while a number of women approached them. They weren’t the only ones, he saw several other groups flitter out to the men at the other couches as well. The girls that approached them were a little plainer than some of the others. He noticed that the more done up and beautiful of them were headed to couches with better dressed men and mercenaries. Still, none of them were dissatisfied with what they were seeing. There were three human girls, a dwarven woman, and a very slight aelf girl that Pyotr immediately leaned toward when he saw her. The elf quickly noted his interest and crossed in front of the others, brushing his black hair from his face and tugging gently on his beard. “You want to have a little taste of an aelven forest?” Pyotr chuckled. “I’d much prefer a large bite,” he said as he let her lead him away from the others. “Well aren’t you a tall one?” said the dwarven woman as she looked up at Ollie even with him sitting down. “How about you come back with me and we figure out how to make this work. The challenge should make it more fun, and I’ve always enjoyed a nice climb.” Ollie grinned ear to ear. “It’s always one problem after another, isn’t it?” He got up and followed her back as well. Marcus didn’t wait for any preamble or flirtation, simply standing up and wrapping his arms around two of the remaining women. “I’ve got the money and energy for two if that’s alright with you?” The girls shrugged, and the three of them were on their way. That left Michael with the last one. She was tall, with blonde hair, and freckles. She slid down onto the couch next to him and ran her fingers through his long hair. She was a bit younger than he normally liked, probably in her early to mid twenties, but he couldn’t deny he felt more than a tinge of attraction to her. “Not too often a man comes in here with prettier hair than me,” she said with a smile. He laughed and had a sip of his wine. “I don’t know about that. You certainly wear yours better.” She leaned in close to whisper in his ear. “You can try wearing it too. How about you see how it looks ringed around your fingers as you pull on it?” Michael coughed, barely keeping from coughing up his wine as he did so. The girl was chuckling musically and patting his back as he recovered. “Wow. You girls are really professionals aren’t you?’ She shrugged. “We try.” While he was originally tepid on the idea of actually spending time with any of the girls, he found it nearly impossible to resist at this point. He’d always been a little hopeless when it came to women pursuing him, even in his old life. He’d managed to make the first move with Sara, but pretty much all of the rest of his girlfriends had simply decided he was dating them one day and he went along with it. Sensing that she had him wrapped around his finger, she stood and ran hand across his face, using her pointer finger to move his eyes up to look at hers as she nodded her head toward the hall. He stood and started to follow her, when a large man put himself between them. He looked as if he’d been carved from rough stone with a chest like a slab and greasy black hair swept back from his face. He was half a head taller than Michael. “I think I’ll be taking this one for the night,” he said as he grabbed her arm. Michael sighed, “Are we really doing this? It feels a bit cliche.” She looked at Michael with an exasperated look on her face. “He does this with a different girl every night, likes to start trouble.” “I mean, it’s up to you if you want me to do something. I’ll be a little disappointed, but if it’s easier for you to go along with his weird fetish, or he pays more, I won’t take it personally.” “Stop talking like I’m not here,” said the man shaking her arm a bit as he faced Michael. The girl looked at Michael. “I’d really rather not go with him.” Michael smiled and carefully set down his wine glass. “Understood. I dedicate this fight to Nykas. I think he’d appreciate that.”