Chapter 2

“What a cheerful place...” Magnus said as they entered the village. He stretched his arms, feeling a familiar ache in his muscles as he took in the view in front of him.

The reclusive village sat in a mountain valley that was rich with various types of vegetation. The houses were all made of thick timber with thatch roofs. It made sense as winter probably had a strong bite in these parts, and wood was a much better insulator than stone. The only problem was the fire hazard. It seemed that the villagers had the same notion in mind when they built their houses, though. The houses were built in an orderly fashion, more or less, with wide streets and a lot of space in between. As with most mountain villages, livestock breeding was obviously the main source of income for the villagers, and Magnus saw barns and pens everywhere.

There was one thing that seemed off, though. Every village he had ever been in was always brimming with life. You could see children running, dogs barking, cattle, carts, and people going about their business. But not here. There were barely any people outside, and no children in sight. The strange part was that it wasn’t even that late in the day. The sun had gone below the rim, yet it was still pleasant outside. These late summer evenings and nights were always a delight to Magnus, but it seemed these villagers didn’t share his tastes.

“Indeed...” Fiona said, sighing.

“What is the name of this village?”

“Sven’s Hollow, if I have been informed right,” Fiona replied, pensive.

She didn’t like this village either. She also had a feeling that something was off. The whole village had a gloomy air to it. Magnus turned to look at his Mistress. They were both riding horses, having left the carriage days before in a town that had been on their way. She was wearing riding pants and boots, a blouse, and a light jacket. She was dressed very practically, Magnus thought, but somehow, even in those clothes she gave off an air of elegance. One look at her, and you would know this was a classy lady. But that was where her practicality ended. Two packhorses led by Magnus were carrying her clothes, trinkets, and her magical ingredients and potions, of course. Magnus couldn’t help smiling. There was no force in the world that could deter his Mistress from her comfort. The fact that she was here, in this god-forsaken place, was a wonder on its own.

But where was ‘here’ anyway? He knew they were somewhere in the mountains in north Nessia. Nessia was a country sitting on Vistania’s western border. Fiona had mentioned she needed something here, but what exactly, was still a mystery. Whatever it was, it was important enough to make her take this trip. He didn’t prod her about it as he knew she would tell him sooner or later. She rarely hid things from him, and he appreciated the fact that he had her trust. It made their bond stronger.

“Well, let’s see what we can find. It is highly unlikely this village has an inn. The village doesn’t lie on any roads, so I doubt anyone ever comes here. I bet we are quite an attraction,” Magnus said after a moment.

“There will be no inn but I will ask to pay for some accommodations. Truth is, I can’t expect much comfort here...” Fiona said with a sour face.

“My good man!” Fiona said loudly, spotting a villager who was crossing the street. He stopped, looking uneasy. He eyed Magnus and then eyed the sword that hung on Magnus’ belt.

“Good day M’lady,” the villager said with an awkward attempt of a bow. He obviously thought Fiona was nobility.

“Where might we find some hospitality here? I will need to stay here for a few nights, so I am willing to pay for it, of course.”

“Umm, I don’t think there is anything that might suit you here M’lady ... I don’t think you would be happy to sleep in a barn,” the villager said, then seeing Fiona made a face, quickly added. “ ... but there is another option. There is an ... abandoned house ... Old Ben used to live there before ... Anyway it is abandoned so ... you could maybe, sleep there, you know,” the villager said with unease.

“Where is this house?”

“It is at the northern edge of the village. Its doors are painted red ... You can’t miss it.”

“Thank you,” Fiona said, handing him a silver coin. The man stared at it, incredulous, then went away hurriedly, mumbling thanks all along.

“That was easy...” Magnus said. “There is something fishy about this village though...”

“Yes ... Well, we won’t be staying long here, if all goes right. Let’s go. I want to find this house before dark.”

They had arrived in the village from the south, so they needed to go through the whole village to get to the northern edge. Their initial impressions about the village and its inhabitants reinforced, they arrived at the northern edge of the village, and as the villager had said, there was a house with red doors. Luckily, it had a barn as well. It would have to do.

They went into the house, looking around with curiosity. The house had just one, relatively large room. They saw a table and chairs, some cupboards, a fireplace, and a single bed at the corner of the room. A thick layer of dust was everywhere. But there were some peculiarities. They saw some of the clay dishes on the table with remnants of food in them. The bed had dusty sheets and a blanket. There was a pot on the fireplace. If one removed all the dust that accumulated over time, one would think this house was still being used. It seemed that whoever had lived here, had just decided to leave on a whim after having a meal, leaving everything as it was. It was strange and it was one more thing that added to their impression that this village wasn’t ordinary.

“Well, my dear Apprentice, I will go and sit outside to enjoy the evening air. I believe you have your hands full,” Fiona said with a smile as she went out of the house.

“It seems that I do...”

There was a lot to do to settle the horses and put the house in order. His Mistress enjoyed seeing him work, especially if the work required hard manual labor that would make him strip out of his shirt. But he wasn’t the same man he had been when he first became her Apprentice, almost a year ago. Now, he had ... tools at his disposal.

He unloaded the horses and carried the bags into the house. He took the horses to the stable, which was in good shape, with plenty of hay stored there. Then, finding the well was in working order, he poured some water for the horses and put some hay and even some oats he had found for the horses to eat. Why did other villagers just leave all of this lying here?

Next, he went into the house and inspected the place. It was time for some practice. He was quite confident in his kinetic magic as he had plenty of time to practice it. His control had improved remarkably as well. His mistress recently started showing him the magic that manipulated air, and Magnus found it worked so well in combination with kinetics. He raised his hands, feeling the energies and directing their flow. This would require subtlety. Combining the pull of kinetics with the flow of the air, he started sucking out the dust from around the house and funneling it towards the doors. A cloud of dust started whooshing through the house, taking the dust from the floor, the furniture, the walls, the bed sheets, and the blanket, and was then funneled through the door. With a smile on his face, Magnus contemplated blowing it all in his Mistress’ face but then abandoned the thought. It was a type of joke she would never appreciate, strict about hygiene as she was, and he would be paying for it dearly for weeks to come. After ‘dusting’ was done, Magnus went out, and with a smirk on his face, searched his Mistress’s eyes.

“Feeling cocky, are we?” Fiona asked, amused.

“I know you prefer it when I use a broom and a rag, but I thought I should be efficient,” he said with a grin.

“I see. There is only one single bed in the house, so I suppose you will be sleeping on the floor.”

“Won’t be the first time. But actually, I was thinking I could sleep in the barn. There is plenty of hay there.”

“So you prefer the company of horses over mine?” Fiona asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Is that a trick question?” Magnus asked innocently, then seeing her blank stare added “Ah, I was being selfish, of course. I will sleep on the house floor at the foot of the bed, in case my glorious Mistress, a princess among princesses, needs anything from me,” Magnus said, performing an exaggerated bow and staying in that position, until ‘the princess’ would allow him to straighten up. He was now well acquainted with her quirks, and he couldn’t help teasing her about them. He didn’t really mind her occasional spoiled princess attitude as it suited her personality so well, and over time, he realized he loved her games. Fiona waved her hand haughtily.

“You can rise now, my faithful subject.”

After an uneventful night, well, aside from the usual long worship session that left him with customary blue balls, Magnus woke up to a familiar touch on his face. His Mistress was sitting on the bed and caressing his face with her feet. He loved feeling her lovely, tender feet on his body. He smiled at her, stifling a yawn.

“Good morning, Mistress.”

“Good morning, Apprentice.”

“So, what are we doing today?”

“We are going flower picking, sort of.”

“We are what?”

“You heard me,” Fiona said with a smile.

“You are telling me that we made all this trip to pick flowers at some god-forsaken village?” Magnus asked, incredulous.

“Yes.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously.”

“What is so special about those flowers?”

“I need them for a potion.”

“Could you be more specific?” Magnus said with a hint of annoyance.

“You are so impossible. You can never just follow without questioning everything. But that annoying personality of yours is one of the reasons I like you, I suppose,” Fiona said, slapping his face lightly with her foot.

“I will explain,” she added, pushing her foot in his mouth. Feeling his tongue on her toes was something she could never get enough of. “The flower I am searching for is very rare and grows only in these parts as far as I know. I want to use it for a new potion I intend to make. Potions are my passion as you know, and I can’t stop finding new applications for the ingredients I have. The flower is very rare and its essence needs to be taken fresh. The flower is useless once it dries up. That is why we are here. The ingredient you provide is the most special one, and for this reason, you have been in a somewhat extended orgasm denial lately,” Fiona said with an amused smile. She took her foot out of his mouth and saw him release a sigh of resignation. It had been almost 2 months since his last release. Every day he cursed the idiot who first thought of using the seed of male mages as an ingredient.

“So what does the potion do?”

“It is a fertility potion,” Fiona said, then seeing the confusion on his face added: “It is a potion that would make barren women fertile. Just imagine the implications,” Fiona said, her eyes taking a sudden shine.

“Oh, I see...”

“Anyway, enough of your laziness. Get up and get dressed. After breakfast, we will try to get some information in the village and then go searching.”

An hour later, they were riding through the village. They did see some more people than yesterday and some children too. But the impression remained the same, somehow. The village seemed ... devoid of life. There was no laughter, no friendly banter, no children running and laughing. All the faces they saw were grim. Fiona stopped a few villagers, giving the description of the flower she was seeking. They all shook their heads.

“There is something bugging these people, definitely ... They just wanted me to stop asking and go away ... We will have to search on our own, my dear Apprentice,” Fiona said with a pensive look. They decided to go north, towards the mountain. The hidden but curious looks of villagers were on them the whole time. Were these people simply strange, or was there something that made them act like this?

“We probably won’t be here long enough to find out.”

The path was sloping up, but it wasn’t steep so the horses managed to climb steadily. The landscape was rocky, with large patches of green every now and then. Several times Fiona veered off from the path in her search for the flower. After hours of futile search, they stopped to rest in a small meadow. After eating some salted meat and cheese they bought in the village, Magnus lay down, finding himself thinking of home. Meadows had that effect on him.

“Are mother and father well? I hope they are ... And how is Lina doing, I wonder ... It has been so long, I miss them all so much...” Magnus thought as he gazed into the sky. There were clouds in the sky, but none in front of the sun, so its rays were bathing the meadow in shades of gold. This was indeed a beautiful country. How could those villagers be so gloomy while living in such a place? Engrossed in his thoughts, he almost didn’t feel Fiona laying her head on his chest. The smell of her hair and the touch of her body was always so intoxicating for him, especially now, when he was without a release for such a long time. He moved his head closer and inhaled deeply, feeling her so familiar, yet still so arousing scent. Fiona extended her hand and caressed his cheek and lips. There was some deep intimacy between them that went beyond the Mistress/Apprentice or even lovers’ relationship. Somehow, they just felt and anticipated each other, the way old friends do. The nuances of their relationship never stopped to amaze Magnus.

“This search has been frustrating so far ... I know how the flower looks, but I have no idea if it is found in meadows, under trees, among rocks, in caverns ... It might take a while,” Fiona said, still caressing Magnus’ lips and probing inside with her finger.

“We will find it. We have just begun the search. It will come up.”

“I hope so,” Fiona said, sighing.

“Look how beautiful this area is, Mistress. The nature is breathtaking. One would expect people who are living here to be in better spirits...”

“Yes, it is really beautiful ... and inspiring...” Fiona said with a purring voice. Magnus glanced at her. She was up to something.

“It is much too hot here, Magnus. Maybe you should strip.”

“Seriously?”

Magnus was surprised by her request, as all their games were always done privately, indoors. Fiona straddled his chest.

“I said strip, big boy. Don’t be such a baby, there is no one here to see you ... although I wish there was,” she whispered in his ear, her hot breath sending a jolt of arousal through his body.

“But here, now? Why?”

“Because I asked you to,” Fiona whispered and then kissed him on the lips. Magnus kissed her back, and for a while, their lips and tongues were locked in a loving struggle.

“Now strip for me ... I need to see you,” she breathed in his ear. Magnus was already aroused and started stripping out of his clothes. Soon, he was completely naked, watching her with clear anticipation.

“Lie down on the grass,” she said and watched him slowly get on his back. The day was warm and the grass felt soft and pleasant underneath his body. Fiona moved a few steps away from him and then started swaying her hips seductively and running her hands through her hair. Magnus watched, mesmerized as she danced and slowly stripped out of her clothes. His cock was so hard it almost hurt. She took off her jacket and her blouse, swaying in some unknown rhythm, and then came closer and extended her foot towards Magnus. He understood and pulled off her boot and then the other one as well. She slowly stripped out of her riding pants and was left wearing her undergarments only.

“You know, this grass is too crude for my tender feet...” she said in a sweet voice Magnus had heard so many times before. She stepped onto his stomach and then moved to his chest, looking down at him with lust and dominance. She kept swaying her hips, walking up and down his body, and then slowly started stripping out of her undergarments. Magnus forgot to breathe as he watched her, his mouth agape. Her body seemed that of a goddess as she swayed rhythmically, bathed by the sun’s golden rays. As she stood completely naked on his chest she pouted her lips as in a kiss and then placed her foot on his mouth. Magnus kissed and licked her foot, taking her toes in his mouth, and watching her beautiful form block the sun and the sky. He loved watching the sun and the sky, always, but this new sun and sky was all he needed to see now. He devoured her foot like a hungry wolf but then saw it being pulled away from him. The sun and sky came closer, much closer, straddling his mouth and giving this puny mortal a chance to savor its taste. Oh, how he loved this amazing taste. He had been tasting it every day, but it still tasted as good as the first time. No ... better, much better. He now knew intimately the person he was tasting, this beautiful and incredibly seductive woman who inflicted the sweetest torture on him, every day. He licked her with passion, hitting all the right spots, the spots he knew so well, looking deep into her beautiful blue eyes.

Fiona rode his mouth as she did so many times before, and she could never get enough of it. This amazing tongue that drank her, that had given her thousands of orgasms was something special. Mostly because it was attached to the most amazing man she knew, with all his stubbornness, talents, beauty, and a character she truly admired. Orgasming on his tongue felt like she was touching the stars. She rode him on and on, orgasm after orgasm, his trained tongue never wavering in its loving caress. She gushed in his mouth time after time and felt her passion seep into him, felt him share a part of her in the act of complete intimacy. They stayed like that, locked in a rhythm they shared, their moans the only sign that there was more going on in this meadow than just the buzzing of bees and rustling of leaves.

Fiona stood up abruptly, her pussy making almost a popping sound separating from Magnus’ lips. She smiled at him and then straddled his painfully hard cock. And the ride continued. Magnus almost chuckled at the notion that he had to go to his meditation meadow, while he was actually, well, in a meadow ... Hanging tight to his focus and meditation, Magnus prepared to hold off the onslaught of passion and arousal that wanted to rip his balls open and make them spew their thick load out. There was no better sensation in the universe than being ridden on cock or mouth by this incredible woman. There was no greater torture in the universe than being ridden by this woman, and not being able to release the tons of arousal, passion, and cum that accumulated in his body. How could something feel like heaven and hell at the same time? Ah, the mysteries of the universe.

As the madness of arousal took him over, Magnus moved to flip her over and fuck her with all the passion he was feeling but then changed his mind. This lovely body shouldn’t get dirtied on the ground. He rose up on his feet instead, holding her and feeling her legs wrapping around his body and her arms around his neck. He started fucking her with strong thrusts as he held her ass with one hand and caressed her face with the other. He kissed her aggressively, feeling her tongue answer with the same passion, and feeling their lips collide in a clash of mad lust. How long did they stay like that, in a perfect symbiosis of their bodies? Only the sun, that regular traveler in the sky, could tell with any certainty. The screams of orgasm coming from Fiona’s lips marked the end of this amazing dance of bodies. They slowly came to their senses, their breathing labored and their bodies slick with sweat. Fiona untangled from Magnus, unsheathing his rock-hard cock. When he caught his breath, Magnus looked down in a look of incredible frustration and almost howled to the sky, like a wolf that had been kept hungry in its cage. For almost two whole months he had been denied release, even if he spent hours every day in some form of sexual activity, and with a woman who made him mad with arousal. With a torturous sigh, he used his kinetic magic to drain his aching cock of blood and help his body settle down.

Fiona was looking at him with a blissful smile. She was completely sated, at least for the moment. Mages had a much greater need for sexual release compared to ordinary people as the magical energies they used greatly increased their sexual drive. On top of that, Magnus, her plaything, was a source of constant arousal for her. His character, his body, and his daily sexual suffering made her pussy tingle with a never-ending flame. They got dressed and looked up, noticing it was late afternoon already. It was time to go back.

On their way back, Magnus suddenly stopped, looking at the landscape he hadn’t noticed before. He motioned to Fiona, then turned his horse towards another meadow, this one containing a lone tree. Fiona followed him, curious.

“Hah! I can’t believe it ... It is almost the same,” Magnus said, laughing. He lay down under the tree and breathed out with a happy smile and a pang of nostalgia. The meadow and the lone tree reminded him so much of his favorite meadow near his father’s farm, a meadow he always reached for when he needed to meditate and maintain absolute focus while casting or having sex.

“This is my anchor,” Magnus said when Fiona came closer. “This is where I go to in my mind when I need to focus to cast or to control my urges. It is not the same of course, but it looks similar enough.”

Fiona nodded, smiling. Her own focus, the place she would go to when she needed to concentrate, was the image of the night sky, the sky she had watched so often as a little girl. Curious how they both clung to places of natural beauty and calm. She rounded the tree, touching its bark, as if trying to get a feel of Magnus’ anchor. The tree was old and wide and had big branches. On one side its bark was darker, probably due to the process of aging. Her glance dropped down, and then she saw it. The flower she needed was here! She crouched down to look better and saw the flower growing not out of the ground, but out of the old tree bark.

“So that’s the secret,” she thought, feeling sudden excitement. This amazing, incredibly rare flower grew only in these parts but only out of the bark of the older trees. No wonder it was so hard to obtain. No wonder no one knew much about it. She reached down and picked the flower carefully. She showed it to Magnus with a big smile on her face.

“You found it?!” Magnus said, wide-eyed.

“Yes! It grows from the tree bark. That is why we couldn’t find it. Now, we know where to look, so tomorrow we can go and search properly,” she said, moving to the horse and pulling out a small bottle from her bag. She used air magic and kinetics to extract the essence from the flower and direct it into the bottle. She would need a lot more, but it was a start.

When they reached the village it was evening already, so they just bathed, pouring the water from the well over their heads and rubbing themselves with the soap Fiona couldn’t go without. Wherever they were, if it was possible in any way, Fiona wanted to be clean and she wanted Magnus to be clean. It was one of her rules that Magnus got used to pretty quickly. Being clean felt great. They ate their dinner and went to sleep. Fiona was somewhat modest with orgasms, after the amazing sex she had had earlier today. Magnus stretched on the floor, concentrating on bringing his arousal down after one more denial. It didn’t take long before sleep found them...

A terrible sound resonated in the night.

Magnus woke up suddenly. He sat up, straining his ears. There it was again! A horrible noise that sounded like something between screeching and wailing. His blood froze. He looked up to see Fiona sitting up as well, alert.

“Did you hear that?”

“Yes...”

“What is that? That is not a sound of any animal I know of,” Magnus said, his body tense in anticipation of the next screech.

“Same here,” Fiona said, rising up and going to the window. There was nothing to be seen outside.

“Should we go out and investigate?” Magnus asked.

“In the middle of the night? Hell no,” Fiona said. “We will see tomorrow morning if the villagers know anything about it.”

They waited for some time, alert, but the sound never repeated itself. Finally, they lay down and after some difficulty, managed to fall asleep.

The sun had barely come up, and the village started showing signs of life. Some villagers were busy with their cattle, some were grabbing water from the well, and some were getting their breakfast ready. Magnus recognized these scenes of village life. They were the same as in almost any other village he had been in. But that was where the resemblance stopped. There was something in the way these people moved, some heavy resignation and desperation. They held their heads down, barely speaking to each other, as if they were sharing some great shame or guilt. Fear was noticeable on some of their faces, especially younger ones. Terror was probably a better word. As Magnus and Fiona rode through the village, people avoided them, replying with grunts to any attempts of conversation.

“We need to find someone who can shed some light on the secrets of this insane village. There is something terribly wrong here,” Fiona said, gazing around, and trying to find anyone willing to talk to them. They spotted a girl pulling two cows across the street. A dog was barking at them and the cows suddenly got startled and started pulling at the ropes the girl held in her hands, both cows pulling in different directions. The girl panicked, trying to hold on to both cows. Magnus rushed to help, taking one rope in his hands and pulling the cow back, soothing it with words. All cows were alike it seemed, the ones here and the ones on his father’s farm. The cow settled down and he led it back to the girl who managed to settle the other cow.

He looked at the girl, meeting her eyes. She was a pretty blonde thing, about his age, somewhat thin, and relatively small. It was a miracle she managed to hold the cows, Magnus thought. He towered above her but he tried to give her his best disarming smile. The girl muttered some thanks and lowered her head again, moving away quickly.

“These cows of yours seem to have a bit of a temper,” he said with a forced chuckle. “I am Magnus, by the way.”

She looked at him again, clearly struggling with herself. He gave her a compassionate look. This was a troubled soul ... all of them were, it seemed.

“Betty...” she said, almost in a whisper.

“Nice to meet you, Betty. I was hoping I could ask you a few questions...”

“Sorry M’lord, I’ve got work...” she said and turned to go.

“Betty, please! We are trying to understand what is happening here, but no one wants to say anything ... Maybe we can even help...”

Betty suddenly turned.

“You should leave, as soon as possible. Just go away from here. This village is cursed!” she said with a trembling voice, and then rushed away, pulling the cows behind her. Magnus watched her go, stunned by her outburst.

“We should go to the square where the market is, or what passes for a market around here. I saw a few tables there. It must be a spot where they gather for a drink. Every place has to have some kind of a social life ... even a sorry place like this,” Fiona said. She had been observing the exchange.

“Cursed ... I will just need to get some tongues wagging,” she thought as they rode towards the square.

They found only a few villagers there. The same man who held the market kept these few tables and poured drinks. It seemed he had to branch out to get enough business. It was no wonder. This was a remote village, so not much trade was being brought here.

“Drinks for everyone, my good man,” Fiona said as she and Magnus took their seats.

The villagers lifted their heads, surprised, but only for a second. The owner poured the drinks. It was some kind of brew made of berries.

“It isn’t too bad, all things considered,” Fiona thought. “Now just to get them talking...”

“It is going to be a fine sunny day it seems,” Fiona said. “Something you should be looking forward to, no?”

One of the villagers muttered something unintelligible.

“Yes, I agree, my good man. I am looking forward to this day too. I share your enthusiasm,” she said with a smile. “Or maybe it is just me ... because I am not from a cursed village,” Fiona said, keeping an indifferent look on her face, but eyeing the villagers’ reactions. She certainly had their attention now.

“Where did you hear those words?” the owner finally said.

“Oh, I’ve heard them, loud and clear last night.”

“You would do best just to leave our village,” the owner said, his voice containing more than a hint of warning.

“It is no place for strangers,” the other villager added. “You might regret ever coming here.”

“Enough!” Magnus said, slamming his fist on the table and startling them all for a second. “Enough of these vague threats and games. Tell us what is going on here!”