Yuliah dreamed of Ryas that night, the kind of dreams that ripped her from her sleep in cold sweats. It can't be? There would be no way the blood binding could last this long. Yuliah sat up. Her senses seemed heightened as well, she reached for the gash across her head and gasped. It was gone! No, how did this happen? "Ward!" She shook him until he woke. "The plant that you gave me where did you get it from?"
"The forest," he mumbled. "Fuck it's so cold," he got up and went to grab his clothes. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing. I just didn't get any sleep last night," Yuliah answered.
"Evil girls don't get much sleep. You know why?" He eyeballed her. "They stay up all night in their dreams thinking about ways to fuck people over," he stared at her.
"Oh Ward, you're still sulking about what happened last night?" Her lips curled up. "Don't be. Think of it as your redemption from all the terrible things you did."
Ward cocked his head up. "NO. I don't want your redemption," he turned away. "We have to go into town, but if I take you. I'll have to fight every horny Nomen we come across. I'm thinking about what to do," he sounded stressed.
"Can Nomens smell the difference between male or female?" Yuliah asked.
"No, why?"
"The Nomen you killed the other day said I carried another scent. What did he mean by that?"
"You mean the one we killed," his brows raised. "That's because he can see us and smelled two scents coming from you, one that is not mine. You must have..." he rolled his eyes at her. "Been busy with someone right before I found you."
Her cheeks flushed. The Nomen probably smelled Ryas' scent. Geneoshi's must have a specific smell to them, and she did sleep with him right before this all happened. "How do I get rid of it?"
Ward smiled annoyingly at her. "Yea, it's called bathing." His eyes scanned Yuliah up and down. "When's the last time you bathed?"
She rolled her eyes at him. "When we fell into the river." What's with these Men and bathing. She had a similar conversation with Ryas a while back.
Ward backed away from her. "You're gross."
Yuliah's feet dangled off the tower when she took a seat next to Ward. A lush green forest surrounded this entire place. "Calm down. If they can't tell that I'm a female or male from my scent..." She continued to think.
He gave her a weary look. "Every time you come closer to me. I feel like shits going to happen to me." He sighed and nudged her sideways.
Yuliah gasped.
Ward jumped. "What the hell!"
"I got it." She whipped around and took his hands in hers. "I'll go as a Man!"
"That's the dumbest shit I've heard." He looked skeptical at first, but then broke into a smile. "You know it might just work."
They searched the shed for clothes but only found a pair of faded pants. Black pants that hung straight down Yuliah's hips and legs, hiding her feminine frame. Ward ripped her skirt into long strips of cloth then fastened them around the waist of her pants, to keep it in place.
Yuliah's top clung tightly to her breasts and only went as far down as her belly button. Reveling her soft skin, and widened hips. That would be a dead giveaway, and the neckline - cut down way too low.
"Here take my shirt." He tossed it at Yuliah. Then held her chin in his hands, and moved her head side to side. "Hmm. Something's missing." He stared at her long and hard, before strolling over to the dead fire, and dipped his fingers into the soot. Ward came back over.
"What are you doing?" Yuliah asked.
"I'm trying to make you look more like a Man."
The tip of his finger brushed across her forehead, then swirled up, in the area between her nose and upper lip. He then moved to the base of her jaw and made a series of quick strokes from one side to the other. When he placed the last stroke on her chin, Ward leaned back and chuckled. "Alright. Let's go."
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Half a days walk through the thick forest, battling bugs, and dehydration finally brought one small man, wearing oversized pants and shirt, along with another completely shirtless man wearing only a pair of white pants into town.
Wood logs rose fifty feet into the air caging the entire town. The tops of the logs sharpened like spikes. "That doesn't look welcoming," Yuliah said.
"The town's changed since I last remembered it, but we'll be fine."
In the tower sat a man, with a cold expression and a weathered face.
"Probably a half breed," Ward said as they approached. "He's too small to be a purebred.
The man's bitter face bore down on them. "State your purpose here?"
"We're traders. We lost our horses and need to buy two new ones. That's all we need, and we'll leave immediately," Ward answered.
The Man's head nervously looked around, then back at Ward. "Go! Get out of here before they find you!" He hissed down to them.
"I'm a trader with the Nomens they know me. We need supplies then we'll go," Ward answered.
Yuliah glanced over at Ward. "Maybe we should leave. I don't have a good feeling about this place. It's gated or more like caged. Cages usually mean they are trying to keep people out or in." She surveyed the town. The town carried that same depressing feel that she hated in the Northern Kingdom so much.
"Don't worry. I know people here. Let's go." Ward dragged her inside.
The streets were busy and filled with shops and taverns, nothing unusual, but Yuliah still kept her guard up. Ever since she left Novas, she'd grown weary of small towns out in the middle of nowhere.
"This place's completely changed." Ward continued to usher Yuliah forward. "Let's look for a tavern. I don't know how much longer I can walk without getting a drink first."
As they continued further down the street past all the shops, Yuliah noticed the lack of males. The butchers, the blacksmiths, the shop owners, they were all females. "Ward, didn't you say Nomens were a dominant male race?"
"Yeah, why you asking that?"
"We haven't seen one single male besides the guard outside. Don't you think it's strange?"
"No. It's good we haven't seen any. Maybe the males are out doing other things."
"What kind of tasks would require all the males from the town?" Now that she took a closer look, she hadn't spotted one single male since the guard tower. Immediately Yuliah's eyes scanned for another route of escape. She didn't feel any better when the Nomen women eye their every move as well.
"I don't know girl, maybe you're just intimidated because of all the beautiful women around." Ward replied.
"That's not it." Seriously instead of listening to her, he'd rather blame it on her being jealous. You couldn't deny the beauty of a Nomen women though, with their sun-kissed complexion, dark, mysterious features, and towering height, they were indeed beautiful, but that wasn't why Yuliah felt uneasy. Even in the Northern Kingdom, the town had a mixture of both men and women throughout the streets, not like here.
Ward's hand tapped Yuliah across her chest. "Up ahead. There's a couple of taverns next to a store. Let's head there."
Washed out wood, you'd find on the river bends or shores, and white stone made up the exterior of four buildings that stood next to one another. Thick green vines spread across the sidings and windows, giving the buildings an almost abandoned feel.
The two approached the first tavern. A soft melody could be heard playing from inside the tavern.
Ward headed in first, and she followed. Once they were inside, Yuliah couldn't believe how warm and welcoming the inside looked. Maybe she was being too concerned and took a deep breath.
Wooden tables were set up in rows throughout the room. A large mirror ran across the entire right side wall, reflecting the shelves of wine and ale the tavern sold.
Yuliah sat facing the mirror and Ward her. She caught a glance of her reflection in the mirror, and let out a loud gasp, turning the heads of the other customers inside the bar.
She rushed over to the mirror and took a closer look. Then heard Ward chuckling behind her. Oh, so he purposely made her a fool. Yuliah charged back over to Ward. "You think this is funny?" She pointed to her face.
Ward started laughing loud and hard. "It took so much not to laugh at you this whole time," he said.
With the soot earlier Ward gave her one long conjoined thick eyebrow. Then a mustache that curled into perfect loops on each end, followed by tiny strokes across her entire chin. His failed attempt at giving her a beard.
"What kind of man has a fucken beard like this Ward?" Yuliah's fist struck him in the shoulder. She released the mark. "Now wash it OFF."
His fists pounded on top of the table as he tried to fight her command.
"Excuse me. Can I get you, two Gentlemen, a drink?" The barista's honey voice interrupted their argument.
Yuliah shut off the mark and Ward's fist unclenched. "Just water and wine for now," she answered.
"See that shit! It worked." Ward laughed at her. "Don't blow our fucken cover."
Yuliah gave him a long dirty glare before finally taking her seat.
The bell behind them chimed as the door burst open, and three Nomen women walked in. They each carried a whip and stood taller than Ward. Yuliah could make out their toned arms and legs reflecting off in the mirror.
The females moved as aggressive as their counterparts across the floor and took the seats right next to Yuliah and Ward.
"You boys look lost." One of the females turned to say.
Yuliah made eye contact with her. The mole above her lip stretched along with her lips when she smiled at them. It's a fake smile. The same ones Corrin used to give Yuliah, right before she did or said something mean to her.
Before Yuliah could reply, Ward answered. "We're just passing through. Looking to buy a couple of horses and we'll be on our way ladies."
By this time the barista returned. "Here are your drinks Gentlemen." She winked before sauntering off.
Yuliah could feel her hands start to jitter as she reached for her glass of wine, and took a giant gulp.
Ward continued to chat up the women.
"What's wrong with your friend? He looks a little scared," one of them asked.
Yuliah's fingers wrapped around the thick handle attached to the large glass in front of her. She flexed her arm and lifted the glass to her lips.
"It's his first time around Nomen women," Ward answered. "He's still a virgin as well." Ward leaned over and whispered to the women. Who let out shrilling laughs before giving each other a subtle look. One that Ward did not notice but Yuliah did. She did that with Yujen all the time.
She couldn't speak; it would give them away; instead, she kicked Ward under the table and smiled. Her head tilted forward and then back. Something was wrong. The room began to spin, and their voices grew distant. "Ward." She stood up. From the corner of her eyes, the three women sprung at them. Yuliah's hand lifted with the glass and swung it at the female closes to her, shattering the glass across her face.
When she turned to Ward, they bounded his feet and arms together already. The two females hoisted him onto their shoulders. Yuliah charged at them, but she stumbled over her feet, all the energy from her body gone in an instant. The last thing she saw were the two females standing over her before her eyes closed.