Spoiler: show
Duel of Devotion
Her eyes took in the sleek, sapphiric form of the opponent standing before her, this usurper who had intervened in her confession of her love. Her fingers itched to draw her well oiled, steel sword from its soft gulon-hide scabbard. How had this happened? Why was she about to duel over the one who had been her best friend since childhood, with this, this mamonme harlot? This woman with an enviable bosom(if liquid at that), well rounded hips(also liquid) and long sleek gel-like hair which cascaded to her shoulders and down her smooth arching back.
Her thoughts drifted back to her childhood days, she had met him one day in the town centre, at the stone fountain devoted to Freyja, a beautiful depiction of the goddess of love and battle which had been sculpted by the town's foremost sculptor. Apparently he had been sketching when a group of bullies had ruined his sketch book. From what she could see he hadn't taken this lightly and had proceeded to.. make them see the error of their ways. However he was not only outnumbered, but weaker as well, still, he had given one of them an early nap before being captured by the others. Grabbing a sturdy, wooden broom handle she had set to work cleaning up the mess and soon the whole lot had fled in a panic.
They had immediately hit it off and become great friends, she had always been more the sporting type and had regularly trained with the town sword master who was said to be an ex-Luminaire hero who had refused to continue fighting after witnessing a barbaric act regarding Bovitaurides in a city square. Strangely enough the Principal Goddess had never attempted to smite him for his heresy, and when word had finally reached their town about Crystal Plinth it had all made sense to her. Over the years however, their friendship had deepened and she had found herself wanting more. With swordplay now firmly rooted into her being, she had had no time to look for partnerships and besides she had no need to either, he had become something of a light of her life, she had caught many fleeting glimpses, as if ghosts in the wreathing mists, of him looking at her longingly, at least he seemed to feel the same as her.
Then it had happened, he had left temporarily for Karpathia, a large bustling city in the north, apparently the family business was opening a new branch there and he had had to supervise. She had had misgivings about allowing him to go into a territory known to be completely friendly to mamonme, but she was his friend not his partner so she had had to let him go. It had been a teary farewell and while he was away her feelings had really made themselves known to her, it was true what they said, absence makes the heart grow fonder. If she had learnt anything from the harpy delivered messages, written in his typically slightly sloppy handwriting, the feeling was definitely mutual. The most recent correspondence had said he would be back in about three days and that he had been dodging an azure slime since entering Gazpecht, a small town just south-west of Karpathia. Thankfully she had shared with him techniques she had been taught on how to avoid getting caught by their kind, he had apparently paid for a horse to put some distance between himself and her apparent rival for his feelings.
When he had finally arrived, he had slipped out of his horse's saddle smoothly, like an eel out of a fisherman's hands and had pounded across to her. A radiant smile spread across his face as if the sun coming out from behind some clouds and any doubts had fled from her mind. Strangling her nerves she turned to him.
"Be, be my-"
"Stop! Be....Maea.....partner!"
A cute yet enraged voice had cut in, not that she hadn't felt incensed herself, how dare this person interfere! She had turned to take in this rival, shock evident on both her own and her friend's faces. How had this mamonme kept up with a horse? It made no sense for a slime to be capable of this. Contemplating her antagonist's features she noted a petite feminine form, large liquid eyes as though twin sparkling tarns in the morning light, what appeared to be a gel-like approximation of hair formed a pointed fringe, as if a wide arrow head above her eyes, and cascaded down her back. She was composed entirely of azure blue slime and had both a generous chest as well as hips to die for. Her inner depths appeared to be roiling with small bubbles.
Placing her hand in front of her best friend she had pushed him behind her before turning a frigid gaze which could slice through icebergs on the usurper.
"He is mine, he is my best friend and will be my partner, besides this is neutral land, you are not allowed to interfere in an established relationship like this, turn around and leave... now."
The azure slime who had named herself Maea simply drew herself up emphasising all of her assets, she crossed her aqualine arms and raised her chin slightly.
"Maea....not.....see....Sida....not....see.....ring.....not.....see.......brooch, man....not.....your......partner.....not......mate."
The mamonme had literally appeared to be pouting, ring or no ring he was hers, she would not allow this, this woman to take him away without a fight. It seemed though that the beryllian maiden had had a similar idea, her gaze had lingered for a few seconds on the furry scabbard at her side. She had reached behind her and retrieved a large bag woven from araneae silk. Reaching in she had drawn forth a sword which let out a soft screech as it scraped against other metallic objects within the bag. A sword? The azure woman regarded her with a scowl before issuing a challenge.
"Maea.......duel.......for........man!"
She had literally snickered, how could this azure slime challenge her with a sword?
"Are you stupid? Everyone knows a slime cannot use a sword."
The mamonme's inner slime had boiled at that, spots of red appearing on her sapphiric cheeks, finally she seemed to calm once more.
"Name? Maea.....want......know.......name."
Her sword had slowly slid out of her scabbard, there was no screech here, just a graceful swish, as though the wind sighing through branches. She turned her gaze back to her opponent.
"Laecelle. This is your last chance, please, just turn and leave."
Dispersing the thoughts as if seeds blown by the wind, she returned to the situation at hand. Maea grinned at her confidently before calmly scattering the contents of the silken sack around her with a flourish. Swords, maybe about twenty of them, all of different shapes and makes lay strewn about her in a vague heart shaped pattern. The azure maiden's grin turned into a polite smile as she curtsied before Laecelle, for a second the breeze died.
A bird twittered happily in a nearby tree.
And she struck, a swift precise strike, also known as "the viper's bite", which would have taken the azure's arm or at least separated it from her body if her sword hadn't deflected it with a skillful block which released a resounding clang and caused the human to take a step back. The sword slipped free from Maea's grip which was tenuous at best and fell towards the ground. At least it would have if an appendage had not emerged from her skirt of slime, caught the sword and delivered a wicked cross slash in Laecelle's direction, she believed that was "bamboo's response", a Zipanguan attack. The young woman muttered a curse before adjusting her grip, allowing the blade to shriek along her own harmlessly... That was close.
Regarding the mamonme in a new light, Laecelle eyed the weapons, she could probably do what she had just done with all of those swords, it might be more difficult than she had first thought.
What had started out as a simple duel had turned into the fight of her life, the women seemed to dance about each other, Laecelle probing, testing, looking for chinks in Maea's defences, the aqualine woman had proven to be formidable, she had become a whirl of arms and hands snatching curved blades, rapiers and single handed swords and had sent her answers to each of her attempted strikes. The azure's expression was set into one of utmost concentration, the type unexpected on a slime's countenance, a liquid blue tongue poked out from between a pair of jelly lips.
It was a song, the voices being the clashes of their blades, a song of love, of determination, of devotion and of simple minded desire. Laecelle managed to slip her blade in between three blades and drew a surprised yelp from the azure maiden as with a quick snicker snack, she scored a slash on Maea's arm. While the apparent wound smoothed over and healed rapidly, the azure slime's expression hardened and the flurry of strikes which suddenly pressed in on the human almost drove her to the ground.
Laecelle panted in exertion, deflecting yet another nasty blow as she began to assess the state of her body, her arms were beginning to feel like there were heavy boulders attached at the elbows, a nick here and there from barely avoided strikes, her heart pounded in her ears as though a landslide precipitating down a mountain side. The sun was in the west, maybe she could feign "wish upon a falling star" blind her with the sun and then execute "rising desert storm". The dance of blades continued as she manoeuvred the fight towards that tree a bird had sung from earlier, the swords moved with her though, as the sapphiric maiden she faced grabbed swords and deposited them in new positions allowing the battleground to follow her whims.
Three, two, one. At the last possible second Laecelle charged up the sturdy trunk of the tree causing Maea to follow her movement with her gaze, with what would appear to be a mighty leap, she dropped from her leafy perch as the azure slime's gaze caught the full brunt of the the sun and continued to follow her now non-existent ascent. Scraping her blade through the loose dirt drawing a cloud of dust as if a sandstorm in a desert, she attempted an upward slash which would split the aqualine maiden in two forcing her to expend energy drawing herself back together. The azure's eyes opened widely for a second, apparently in shock or disbelief before narrowing, her mouth drew up in a confident smirk... Laecelle swore an oath, she had seen through her ruse.
Instantly the azure slime reared up, almost towering above her.
"Blos.....soms......in........Para....dise!"
Against all reason Maea had declared her attack, was it because she was new to this or because she had clinched the duel? The answer came a split second later as a torrent of thrusts and slices bore down on the human, she parried, dodged and weaved, however it was all for naught as the flats of two swords crashed down upon her own, pinning the sword to the ground, another stopped inches away from her throat causing her to swallow in spite of herself. Maea merely smiled.
"Lae....celle..........make.........roo...kie........mis...take.......sun.......not........blind........slime..........Maea.......wins."
Her sword dropped uselessly from a lifeless hand, sun blonde hair falling in rivulets upon her shoulders as her world came crashing down around her. She must have lost her hair band during the fight,her thoughts promptly switched to her current situation. She knew he would not just leave her over this, their bond was too great, however her pride had been shattered. This azure slime might take him from her whether he wanted to or not... It might all be over even though he loved her. She was so strong, there was no way she could defeat her and rescue him if he was taken, tears began to fill her eyes and drip down her cheeks.
Maea stooped to pick up another sword placing it carefully in her araneae silk sack. It was at this moment that a sniffle sounded from behind her, a second later the sniffles were overwhelmed by loud wailing, the azure slime's shoulders sagged as a feeling she did not know rose within her, her slimy core wobbled uneasily.
"Maea.....not......stu......pid."
She attempted to reach for another sword only to be drawn against her own will to look at the young woman she had defeated. The maiden had curled up into a foetal form, her hands clawing at the grass and soft earth, her face was awash with tears. Maea's inner core bubbled in consternation, finally with a gentle sigh she oozed over to Laecelle, a trail of pearlescent slime left in her wake. She knelt over the grief stricken human, unsure of what would calm her.
"Maea.......have.....a......heart."
With these words spoken she placed a liquid hand on Laecelle's quivering form. An azure slime may not have the most complex understanding of emotions, she may not be the most eloquent either, but one thing all azures are capable of is expressing the emotions that they do have.
"Maea......not......take......friend."
That must have eased the human's worries for her sobs began to subside, her face was red with the exertion her outburst had had on her, still sniffling and hiccuping a little, she drew herself up onto feeble, wobbly arms, her face still taking in the ground below her. Shoulders shook as another hiccup tore itself through her body. The beryllian maiden eyed her with some concern, finally holding out a svelte, aqualine hand.
"Lae.......celle.........stand.......please."
The young woman stared at the proffered hand as if it were an unexpected sighting of a unicorn, her mouth slightly agape, her gaze drifted up to the sapphiric maiden's apparently concerned face, before returning to her hand and then to the ground below her.
"Why are you treating me like this? Are you laughing at me in your mind? This pathetic human who couldn't put up a decent fight and only-"
A dainty aqualine hand slapped her across the cheek and her world spun for a second.
"Lae......celle..........stop..........take........Maea's.......hand."
Laecelle's eyes continued to bore into the ground below her, remnants of her earlier outburst still tracking the curves of her cheeks and plummeting to the grass below. Maea however continued to speak, her halting voice calm.
"Maea..........train......by.....strong..........azure..........Mis......tress.........Fee..............strong...........Lae........celle.........be......
proud........only..........fighter........make.........Maea..........serious."
Mistress Fee? That name rang a bell in Laecelle's mind, the daughter of a powerful swordmaster not to mention the wife of the current strongest swordmaster in the lands! Her eyes widened, she had scored a strike on an accomplished student of hers? A hesitant hand inched up to the azure one still held out to her.
"You were so strong, I have never fought someone like you.."
Maea smiled at the response, a radiant expression painting her face, there was also a more hopeful expression mixed in there it appeared.
"Maea..........always............want..........older..........sister..........Lae......celle..........be....come..........Maea...........older.......
sister..........share?"
Laecelle looked at the liquid woman before her, favouring her with a dubious expression.
"What if you make him like you more than me? I have heard of mamonme doing this in the past, especially on friendly ground."
The azure maiden's expression almost looked.. hurt, shaking her liquid head, her jelly hair swinging about, merging and reforming, she placed both of her delicate hands on the human's own.
"Maea......not........like........that........not.........bad........girl..........Maea..........promise..........help..........Lae...celle, Lae...celle........strong.......woman.........want........older......sister!"
"Really?"
The young maiden seemed incredulous, Maea's smile slowly returned to her face.
"Yes...........Maea............help.............Lae..celle.............be............like..............mamonme-"
"No! I am human, I don't want to become a mamonme, I shouldn't need to!"
She cut right through the azure's response causing her to sigh with non-existent lungs. A bird in a nearby bush warbled as if laughing at the scene taking place before it. Tapping her fist against her head and eliciting a soft plop in return Maea somehow appeared to fix the human with an exasperated glare.
"Laecelle..........silly.............Maea..............not..............do...........that. Maea............help...........Laecelle........keep .............partner!"
This once again drew a look of confusion from Laecelle.
"Why?"
The mamonme turned large eyes on the human, before whispering confidentially, a soft blush on her blue cheeks and a hand covering her mouth as if shielding the conversation from others' ears which was rather odd as besides her partner the two of them were alone.
"Maea.......want.........love.........Laecelle........and..........mate...........want............to.........be........loved.......by..........Laecelle ...........and............mate..........too."
Laecelle looked at the azure slime her mouth agape, then a smile cracked upon her face as she giggled quietly, finally she waved a hand in front of her own face before retrieving her sword from the viridian grass and sliding it back into her scabbard with only a whisper of sound.
"You have some strange tastes, very well, we can try this, but only if he agrees."
While it took a while for her friend to eventually come around to the idea of having two partners he eventually agreed. While that day Laecelle had lost a battle, she had come to acquire a seemingly devoted little sister. In the weeks, months and years which would soon flow one into another in their ceaseless dance that waits for no man, woman or mamonme, tales of a trio of heroes, one mamonme, the other two human would spread across the lands. That however is a tale for another day.
Her eyes took in the sleek, sapphiric form of the opponent standing before her, this usurper who had intervened in her confession of her love. Her fingers itched to draw her well oiled, steel sword from its soft gulon-hide scabbard. How had this happened? Why was she about to duel over the one who had been her best friend since childhood, with this, this mamonme harlot? This woman with an enviable bosom(if liquid at that), well rounded hips(also liquid) and long sleek gel-like hair which cascaded to her shoulders and down her smooth arching back.
Her thoughts drifted back to her childhood days, she had met him one day in the town centre, at the stone fountain devoted to Freyja, a beautiful depiction of the goddess of love and battle which had been sculpted by the town's foremost sculptor. Apparently he had been sketching when a group of bullies had ruined his sketch book. From what she could see he hadn't taken this lightly and had proceeded to.. make them see the error of their ways. However he was not only outnumbered, but weaker as well, still, he had given one of them an early nap before being captured by the others. Grabbing a sturdy, wooden broom handle she had set to work cleaning up the mess and soon the whole lot had fled in a panic.
They had immediately hit it off and become great friends, she had always been more the sporting type and had regularly trained with the town sword master who was said to be an ex-Luminaire hero who had refused to continue fighting after witnessing a barbaric act regarding Bovitaurides in a city square. Strangely enough the Principal Goddess had never attempted to smite him for his heresy, and when word had finally reached their town about Crystal Plinth it had all made sense to her. Over the years however, their friendship had deepened and she had found herself wanting more. With swordplay now firmly rooted into her being, she had had no time to look for partnerships and besides she had no need to either, he had become something of a light of her life, she had caught many fleeting glimpses, as if ghosts in the wreathing mists, of him looking at her longingly, at least he seemed to feel the same as her.
Then it had happened, he had left temporarily for Karpathia, a large bustling city in the north, apparently the family business was opening a new branch there and he had had to supervise. She had had misgivings about allowing him to go into a territory known to be completely friendly to mamonme, but she was his friend not his partner so she had had to let him go. It had been a teary farewell and while he was away her feelings had really made themselves known to her, it was true what they said, absence makes the heart grow fonder. If she had learnt anything from the harpy delivered messages, written in his typically slightly sloppy handwriting, the feeling was definitely mutual. The most recent correspondence had said he would be back in about three days and that he had been dodging an azure slime since entering Gazpecht, a small town just south-west of Karpathia. Thankfully she had shared with him techniques she had been taught on how to avoid getting caught by their kind, he had apparently paid for a horse to put some distance between himself and her apparent rival for his feelings.
When he had finally arrived, he had slipped out of his horse's saddle smoothly, like an eel out of a fisherman's hands and had pounded across to her. A radiant smile spread across his face as if the sun coming out from behind some clouds and any doubts had fled from her mind. Strangling her nerves she turned to him.
"Be, be my-"
"Stop! Be....Maea.....partner!"
A cute yet enraged voice had cut in, not that she hadn't felt incensed herself, how dare this person interfere! She had turned to take in this rival, shock evident on both her own and her friend's faces. How had this mamonme kept up with a horse? It made no sense for a slime to be capable of this. Contemplating her antagonist's features she noted a petite feminine form, large liquid eyes as though twin sparkling tarns in the morning light, what appeared to be a gel-like approximation of hair formed a pointed fringe, as if a wide arrow head above her eyes, and cascaded down her back. She was composed entirely of azure blue slime and had both a generous chest as well as hips to die for. Her inner depths appeared to be roiling with small bubbles.
Placing her hand in front of her best friend she had pushed him behind her before turning a frigid gaze which could slice through icebergs on the usurper.
"He is mine, he is my best friend and will be my partner, besides this is neutral land, you are not allowed to interfere in an established relationship like this, turn around and leave... now."
The azure slime who had named herself Maea simply drew herself up emphasising all of her assets, she crossed her aqualine arms and raised her chin slightly.
"Maea....not.....see....Sida....not....see.....ring.....not.....see.......brooch, man....not.....your......partner.....not......mate."
The mamonme had literally appeared to be pouting, ring or no ring he was hers, she would not allow this, this woman to take him away without a fight. It seemed though that the beryllian maiden had had a similar idea, her gaze had lingered for a few seconds on the furry scabbard at her side. She had reached behind her and retrieved a large bag woven from araneae silk. Reaching in she had drawn forth a sword which let out a soft screech as it scraped against other metallic objects within the bag. A sword? The azure woman regarded her with a scowl before issuing a challenge.
"Maea.......duel.......for........man!"
She had literally snickered, how could this azure slime challenge her with a sword?
"Are you stupid? Everyone knows a slime cannot use a sword."
The mamonme's inner slime had boiled at that, spots of red appearing on her sapphiric cheeks, finally she seemed to calm once more.
"Name? Maea.....want......know.......name."
Her sword had slowly slid out of her scabbard, there was no screech here, just a graceful swish, as though the wind sighing through branches. She turned her gaze back to her opponent.
"Laecelle. This is your last chance, please, just turn and leave."
Dispersing the thoughts as if seeds blown by the wind, she returned to the situation at hand. Maea grinned at her confidently before calmly scattering the contents of the silken sack around her with a flourish. Swords, maybe about twenty of them, all of different shapes and makes lay strewn about her in a vague heart shaped pattern. The azure maiden's grin turned into a polite smile as she curtsied before Laecelle, for a second the breeze died.
A bird twittered happily in a nearby tree.
And she struck, a swift precise strike, also known as "the viper's bite", which would have taken the azure's arm or at least separated it from her body if her sword hadn't deflected it with a skillful block which released a resounding clang and caused the human to take a step back. The sword slipped free from Maea's grip which was tenuous at best and fell towards the ground. At least it would have if an appendage had not emerged from her skirt of slime, caught the sword and delivered a wicked cross slash in Laecelle's direction, she believed that was "bamboo's response", a Zipanguan attack. The young woman muttered a curse before adjusting her grip, allowing the blade to shriek along her own harmlessly... That was close.
Regarding the mamonme in a new light, Laecelle eyed the weapons, she could probably do what she had just done with all of those swords, it might be more difficult than she had first thought.
What had started out as a simple duel had turned into the fight of her life, the women seemed to dance about each other, Laecelle probing, testing, looking for chinks in Maea's defences, the aqualine woman had proven to be formidable, she had become a whirl of arms and hands snatching curved blades, rapiers and single handed swords and had sent her answers to each of her attempted strikes. The azure's expression was set into one of utmost concentration, the type unexpected on a slime's countenance, a liquid blue tongue poked out from between a pair of jelly lips.
It was a song, the voices being the clashes of their blades, a song of love, of determination, of devotion and of simple minded desire. Laecelle managed to slip her blade in between three blades and drew a surprised yelp from the azure maiden as with a quick snicker snack, she scored a slash on Maea's arm. While the apparent wound smoothed over and healed rapidly, the azure slime's expression hardened and the flurry of strikes which suddenly pressed in on the human almost drove her to the ground.
Laecelle panted in exertion, deflecting yet another nasty blow as she began to assess the state of her body, her arms were beginning to feel like there were heavy boulders attached at the elbows, a nick here and there from barely avoided strikes, her heart pounded in her ears as though a landslide precipitating down a mountain side. The sun was in the west, maybe she could feign "wish upon a falling star" blind her with the sun and then execute "rising desert storm". The dance of blades continued as she manoeuvred the fight towards that tree a bird had sung from earlier, the swords moved with her though, as the sapphiric maiden she faced grabbed swords and deposited them in new positions allowing the battleground to follow her whims.
Three, two, one. At the last possible second Laecelle charged up the sturdy trunk of the tree causing Maea to follow her movement with her gaze, with what would appear to be a mighty leap, she dropped from her leafy perch as the azure slime's gaze caught the full brunt of the the sun and continued to follow her now non-existent ascent. Scraping her blade through the loose dirt drawing a cloud of dust as if a sandstorm in a desert, she attempted an upward slash which would split the aqualine maiden in two forcing her to expend energy drawing herself back together. The azure's eyes opened widely for a second, apparently in shock or disbelief before narrowing, her mouth drew up in a confident smirk... Laecelle swore an oath, she had seen through her ruse.
Instantly the azure slime reared up, almost towering above her.
"Blos.....soms......in........Para....dise!"
Against all reason Maea had declared her attack, was it because she was new to this or because she had clinched the duel? The answer came a split second later as a torrent of thrusts and slices bore down on the human, she parried, dodged and weaved, however it was all for naught as the flats of two swords crashed down upon her own, pinning the sword to the ground, another stopped inches away from her throat causing her to swallow in spite of herself. Maea merely smiled.
"Lae....celle..........make.........roo...kie........mis...take.......sun.......not........blind........slime..........Maea.......wins."
Her sword dropped uselessly from a lifeless hand, sun blonde hair falling in rivulets upon her shoulders as her world came crashing down around her. She must have lost her hair band during the fight,her thoughts promptly switched to her current situation. She knew he would not just leave her over this, their bond was too great, however her pride had been shattered. This azure slime might take him from her whether he wanted to or not... It might all be over even though he loved her. She was so strong, there was no way she could defeat her and rescue him if he was taken, tears began to fill her eyes and drip down her cheeks.
Maea stooped to pick up another sword placing it carefully in her araneae silk sack. It was at this moment that a sniffle sounded from behind her, a second later the sniffles were overwhelmed by loud wailing, the azure slime's shoulders sagged as a feeling she did not know rose within her, her slimy core wobbled uneasily.
"Maea.....not......stu......pid."
She attempted to reach for another sword only to be drawn against her own will to look at the young woman she had defeated. The maiden had curled up into a foetal form, her hands clawing at the grass and soft earth, her face was awash with tears. Maea's inner core bubbled in consternation, finally with a gentle sigh she oozed over to Laecelle, a trail of pearlescent slime left in her wake. She knelt over the grief stricken human, unsure of what would calm her.
"Maea.......have.....a......heart."
With these words spoken she placed a liquid hand on Laecelle's quivering form. An azure slime may not have the most complex understanding of emotions, she may not be the most eloquent either, but one thing all azures are capable of is expressing the emotions that they do have.
"Maea......not......take......friend."
That must have eased the human's worries for her sobs began to subside, her face was red with the exertion her outburst had had on her, still sniffling and hiccuping a little, she drew herself up onto feeble, wobbly arms, her face still taking in the ground below her. Shoulders shook as another hiccup tore itself through her body. The beryllian maiden eyed her with some concern, finally holding out a svelte, aqualine hand.
"Lae.......celle.........stand.......please."
The young woman stared at the proffered hand as if it were an unexpected sighting of a unicorn, her mouth slightly agape, her gaze drifted up to the sapphiric maiden's apparently concerned face, before returning to her hand and then to the ground below her.
"Why are you treating me like this? Are you laughing at me in your mind? This pathetic human who couldn't put up a decent fight and only-"
A dainty aqualine hand slapped her across the cheek and her world spun for a second.
"Lae......celle..........stop..........take........Maea's.......hand."
Laecelle's eyes continued to bore into the ground below her, remnants of her earlier outburst still tracking the curves of her cheeks and plummeting to the grass below. Maea however continued to speak, her halting voice calm.
"Maea..........train......by.....strong..........azure..........Mis......tress.........Fee..............strong...........Lae........celle.........be......
proud........only..........fighter........make.........Maea..........serious."
Mistress Fee? That name rang a bell in Laecelle's mind, the daughter of a powerful swordmaster not to mention the wife of the current strongest swordmaster in the lands! Her eyes widened, she had scored a strike on an accomplished student of hers? A hesitant hand inched up to the azure one still held out to her.
"You were so strong, I have never fought someone like you.."
Maea smiled at the response, a radiant expression painting her face, there was also a more hopeful expression mixed in there it appeared.
"Maea..........always............want..........older..........sister..........Lae......celle..........be....come..........Maea...........older.......
sister..........share?"
Laecelle looked at the liquid woman before her, favouring her with a dubious expression.
"What if you make him like you more than me? I have heard of mamonme doing this in the past, especially on friendly ground."
The azure maiden's expression almost looked.. hurt, shaking her liquid head, her jelly hair swinging about, merging and reforming, she placed both of her delicate hands on the human's own.
"Maea......not........like........that........not.........bad........girl..........Maea..........promise..........help..........Lae...celle, Lae...celle........strong.......woman.........want........older......sister!"
"Really?"
The young maiden seemed incredulous, Maea's smile slowly returned to her face.
"Yes...........Maea............help.............Lae..celle.............be............like..............mamonme-"
"No! I am human, I don't want to become a mamonme, I shouldn't need to!"
She cut right through the azure's response causing her to sigh with non-existent lungs. A bird in a nearby bush warbled as if laughing at the scene taking place before it. Tapping her fist against her head and eliciting a soft plop in return Maea somehow appeared to fix the human with an exasperated glare.
"Laecelle..........silly.............Maea..............not..............do...........that. Maea............help...........Laecelle........keep .............partner!"
This once again drew a look of confusion from Laecelle.
"Why?"
The mamonme turned large eyes on the human, before whispering confidentially, a soft blush on her blue cheeks and a hand covering her mouth as if shielding the conversation from others' ears which was rather odd as besides her partner the two of them were alone.
"Maea.......want.........love.........Laecelle........and..........mate...........want............to.........be........loved.......by..........Laecelle ...........and............mate..........too."
Laecelle looked at the azure slime her mouth agape, then a smile cracked upon her face as she giggled quietly, finally she waved a hand in front of her own face before retrieving her sword from the viridian grass and sliding it back into her scabbard with only a whisper of sound.
"You have some strange tastes, very well, we can try this, but only if he agrees."
While it took a while for her friend to eventually come around to the idea of having two partners he eventually agreed. While that day Laecelle had lost a battle, she had come to acquire a seemingly devoted little sister. In the weeks, months and years which would soon flow one into another in their ceaseless dance that waits for no man, woman or mamonme, tales of a trio of heroes, one mamonme, the other two human would spread across the lands. That however is a tale for another day.
