Raker's Reward

Mathis hated his work. The smell of excrement and blood mixed together had already numbed his sense of smell, and even the never ending flies and vermin had become something to just shrug off. However, the dead was something he really did not want to deal with. It wasn't supposed to be like this. If anything, he had wanted to have a normal life, like his father.

His father had been a guardsman, and even if he had been as shitty as the rest of them to the city, he had been a decent father and husband. Unfortunately, with his death, Mathis had been left to take care of his mother, who had fallen ill. A few bouts of coughing a day had eventually increased to her coughing up blood. So, Mathis, who had been planning as apprenticing as a butcher, had no choice but to take what work he could. Unfortunately, when he had gone begging for work, they had told him this was all that was left. So, he had become a raker, collecting garbage, left over viscera, and excrement from across the city to dispose of outside the city.

That was when the nightmare had started. At first it had been the odd person, who had died suspiciously in the city. Then, bodies of women and in some cases children started being bundled for him to cart away out of the city to dump. Though they hadn't been that frequent, Mathis knew it wasn't normal. However, he kept quiet, desperate for the money. In the last few years, though, things had gotten more bizarre and horrifying. It was no longer relatively intact bodies. Some hulking bastard had started dropping off shredded body parts and bones that looked like someone or something had been chewing on them. Mathis had almost run to the Temple the first time he saw the remains, but the hulking brute's threats about his mother had silenced any defiance.

Even now, Mathis had nightmares every few nights, wondering who those bones belonged to. He had heard rumors, of course, about the gangs, but he hadn't been brave enough to dig deeper. The handful of times he had tried to talk to his father's old friends about missing people, they had told him to keep his mouth shut and that it was none of their business. So, Mathis kept shoveling, while keeping quiet.

Watching the hulking brute walk into the collection shed, Mathis sighed, wondering if he could have changed his life. He still thought about going to the Temple once in a while, but looking at the bald brute casually tossing a bag of chewed up bones to the floor, he decided he was not that courageous. Moreover, he figured he deserved more after everything he had done so far. “I need ta talk to ya 'bout getting' more for this.”

Bard's Desire

“Kiss me deeply, til I fall into your enchanting soul...” The song flowed out his mouth, almost smoothly, as he relaxed in the feeling of being gently caressed. Plucking the strings of his harp, Devin smiled in what knew was his most enchanting smile at the two blonde haired women, lying on either side of him, almost dwelling on his every word. They were relatively new to the whorehouse, so it only took a little effort for Devin to avail himself of their companionship.

This was the life for him. There was no need to sweat out on the cursed streets or fields, toiling in the sun and sweating like a pig. When he had been young, his farmer father had cursed him for being weak and womanly. Even Devin had hated himself. However, that was all before he saw a bard perform at his village. It wasn't anything spectacular, but the almost magnetic draw the weak looking man had for the village woman had been an eye opener. That and how much the bard had swindled out of the villagers for doing nothing but telling a few stories and singing a few crummy songs and ballads.

So, he ran away to be a bard, once he was old enough to leave home. However, he learned in some very hard ways that being a weak, effeminate male living alone in this world was much more horrible than village life. It took him some time to eventually find his place. Middle aged and elderly women tended to find comfort in his arms, and he ended up finding comfort in their money purses. What more, he learned how to speak his sweet words well enough, that they were more than willing to trust him.

His life in this city had been perfect for the last five years, especially since the city council left him alone after he helped them deal with that guard sergeant, who had been poking around in the wrong places. Unfortunately, the winds of change had blown into the city. Word was spreading that the count's second son had returned, and the position of the count's heir was no longer as sure as it had been a few months ago. What intrigued Devin was that the second son had reached out to a mere bard to discuss city matters and to use his capabilities. However, it was somewhat confusing to Devin why the noble had not yet sent him a messenger with the rumors that needed to be spread. Shrugging, Devin went back to strumming his harp as he sang, “Come, my sweet, kiss me deeply...”