forum Fantasy poly couple anyone?

Started May 16, 2021 by @Elder-God-Jacks347

tune

"I still don't see why we don't." The guild hall slowly approached. "Honestly, it's not like the three of us aren't capable. I'm here to make sure you and Archer have somebody at your back, it's not like it'd go so badly."

"I'm a healing mage, not a fighter. I'm support, not the main attacker. We're kind of weak when it comes to offense. At least for just the two of us."

"I know that babe, but as long as we stay long range I'm pretty sure we could handle that. It's not like it's so hard to down one as long as you know which one you're going up against."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. Let's just hope it's not a dragon that will turn us char broiled on sight." Fen sighed.

Ori laughed quietly, leaning over to peck him on the cheek. "We'll be fine, love. There's no way they'd hire us if it was something that big, everything's going to be a-ok."

"You say that now." Fen chewed on his lip as he pushed open the door to the guild hall. He scanned the room before heading over to a woman in the corner. "Xachia?" "That's me." "We heard about your quest, we'd like to take it up." The woman looked Fen up and down for a minute. "You'll work. Alright, I'll let you take the quest." Fen and Archer stared quizzically for a second. What does she mean "I'll work"?

Ori didn't seem all that fazed, used to taking solo work from much sketchier sources than a certified guild. "Whereabouts should we go, then? I expect you'll want it done sooner rather than later."

Xachia reached into her pocket and handed them two pieces of paper. One was a map with a location circled and the other was a flyer written in some foreign language.
"As you may or may not know, one of the demon princes is touring the lands. This is his next projected location."
Fen looked at her, a bit skeptical. "And what does that have to do with us?"
Xachia raised an eyebrow at Fen, almost like a warning. "Well, I've been hunting each of the princes myself and he's my next target so I need a way in. You three are going to be that way in." "And what did you mean when you said that I'll work?" "Every time the prince is in a new town, he takes a few of the residents that he finds attractive to his den that night. He has his way with them and at dawn, he kills them. Then he moves on. His type is said to be short, feminine looking men with a preference for red hair. And, dear boy, you fit the bill perfectly." Xachia smiled reassuringly as Fen put the pieces together. "Don't worry, if everything goes well, you'll be out of that den long before dawn."

Ori winced at the mention of the demon prince—it figured it would be the one thing they didn't want to deal with that ended up being the focus of the job—but that was nothing compared to the way he reacted to Xachia's master plan. He took a step forward, shuffling so Fen was halfway behind him, and gave the hunter a polite smile. "If that's the case, I'm afraid we're going to sit this one out. Fen and Archer have a strict no demons policy and I'm obliged to keep us from taking anything that deals with that sort of creature."

"No, Ori, it's fine. Let's do it." Fen countered softly, stepping forward to he next to him again. Archer still seemed worried. "But Fen-" "No, I'm serious. It's fine. I want to help." "…okay. If you really think it's a good idea."

Ori wasn't quite as willing to let Fen do this as Archer was. "No way, Fen! This plan is bullshit, what if something goes wrong?"

"Do you trust me?" Fen stared into Ori's eyes when he asked. "Do you trust that I know when something is a bad idea and there are no ways for me to get out on my own if something goes wrong?"

"You said yourself that you can't do offensive magic!" Ori trusted Fen fully, what he didn't trust was that this would all go off without a hitch. Demon hunters weren't exactly courteous, in his experience. He didn't trust that Xachia would step in before Fen got hurt. "What if he tries something, Fen? I trust you and I know that you can get things done, just… he's a demon, you're not. He could do a lot of damage."

"Maybe you need to have a little more faith in me. I'm not a one trick pony, Ori. Maybe I need to show you that." Fen turned back to Xachia. "When do we start." "Tomorrow morning. We have to strike fast before he disappears again."

Ori winced, pressing a little closer to Archer's side, but he didn't argue again. "How long will all this take?"

"A couple days. A week at most. It isn't going to be easy but I don't think you expected it to be." Xachia pushed herself off the wall and towards the door. "Come on, the journey starts tomorrow but we've got a lot to do before we go anywhere."

Ori sighed quietly, following along behind Xachia with Archer at his side. "What do you want Archer and I to do while Fen's acting as bait?"

"You'll be with me behind the scenes trying to get him out and give me the opening I need to do my job." Xachia explained quickly, keeping Fen by her side and constantly looking him over like she was searching for flaws. Fen shrunk back a little, pulling his cloak tighter around him in an attempt to hide from the scrutiny.

Ori winced slightly, reaching forward and pulling Fen up against his side, as far from Xachia as she's allow. The way she looked at him was uncomfortable to say the least. It only made him more uncomfortable with what was happening. "Alright. I suppose we'll all be helping set up the ambush then, won't we?"

"Bingo. As for our decoy, he'll be playing concubine with the other unfortunate souls that end up in his den that night. With luck, he won't end up alone with the bastard because that could spell disaster."

"I have some questions about that, actually." Ori took a step forward. "How are you going to ensure that Fen comes out of this okay? I know you're a professional hunter and all, but I feel we should have some fall backs in place. Just in case things go sour."

"I'll have some of my guild on standby in case something goes wrong. A professional never goes in without a backup plan." Xachia waved Ori off, once again looking Fen over.

Ori let himself be dismissed once he was assured of Fen's safety, taking Archer's hand as he fell back. "Excited to hunt some demons, darling?"