Title-- The Demon-God of Jubagh (book two, part eleven)
Rating and Warnings-- PG; mild language and violence.
Cast-- Rai Gerring, defected black magician (human man); Brandon Styhan, exiled paladin-warrior (human man); Lhafa Softstep, blind voodoo warrior (baghan woman); Jujinkajou, native guide (shapechanger Sivefi man).
Previously-- Book One: Jubagh. Earlier parts of Book Two: Sivef.



Lhafa's head snapped around, and she stared sharply at the door that Ju'jou had gone through. Brandon and Rai had been idly conversing in baghan while they waited, but they stopped when the blind woman moved forward, clicked hooved fingertips on the door until she found the handle, and hauled it bodily open. "Lhafa...?" Rai asked, startled.

"Ju'jou," she answered tersely, reaching a hand up to find where the top of the short doorframe was, then carefully ducking sideways through the doorway. A burst of sivefan chatter greeted her, but the noise of the common room of the inn was too much to distinguish breathing or cloth-rustling in order to pinpoint location. She gave a frustrated lash of her tail. "What is wrong?" she asked, standing tall enough that she felt the ceiling brush the very top of her silvery mane.

Rai shot Brandon a concerned look, then followed her before the door could shut. The exile grumbled under his breath, folded his arms, and leaned against the outside of the door. No one would be entering through it to cause further strife, and he didn't doubt Rai's ability to handle whatever was going on. Probably just a little scuffle.

The magician glanced between changer and another Sivefi; they had squared off, like they were going to fight, and Ju'jou's tail had fluffed like an angry cat's. Lhafa's question hadn't been answered, and Rai quickly stepped between the Sivefi and their guide, facing the stranger. He lifted empty hands, tossing his hood back to let his face be seen. "No fight," he managed, inwardly cursing his lack of fluency. Hard to be a diplomat when he could barely speak the language!

The Sivefi eyed him up and down, then snorted. "Move, off-worlder," he grunted, voice smoother and deeper than Ju'jou's. "My business is with the boy. He's going to work for me."

Lhafa spoke before Rai could pull enough words from his memory to respond. "He works for us," she countered, an edge to her voice. "You will not detain him."

Slowly, the Sivefi turned to look the necessary two feet up at the baghan woman. He crooked the three digits on one hand into an approximation of a fist and waved it at her. "You stay out of this, off-worlder. None of your business."

Behind Rai, Ju'jou let out a whine and spoke so quickly that neither Rai nor Lhafa could catch what he said. The Sivefi let out a short roar and made to lunge forward, an arm already upraised to knock the magician out of the way.

The sound was enough to let the baghan warrior pinpoint his location. He'd gotten a knee to the solar plexus and a swift blow to the side of his neck before he managed to take more than a half-step forward; he grunted and dropped to his knees, clutching at his torso. The room quieted, heads turning to look at the source of the commotion and the source of a new silver-white radiance.

Lhafa stood over the groaning man, her tail lashing and her talisman brightly a-glow. "He works for us," she repeated with deliberate care. "You will not detain him." She paused, looking sightlessly down. "Do you understand me?"

The Sivefi reached for a chair and used it as leverage to pull himself to his feet. "I understand," he growled, straightening. "But I don't agree." His thick fingers curled around the chair's back, and he swung it forcefully into Lhafa's side.

She staggered two paces to the right and shook off the blow, though the wooden construct had shattered into its constituent parts at the impact. "I should not kill him?" she murmured in baghan to Rai, a sharp-hoofed kick to the Sivefi's face knocking the squat creature backwards into a table, which tipped its steaming contents onto the combatant.

"Hells, we probably shouldn't even be causing a stir if we ever want fed," Rai replied, sounding more amused than the situation warranted. "However, he started it." He was grinning wickedly, hands folded in front of his stomach in a spectator's do-not-touch position. "So you get to finish it."

The Sivefi again climbed to his feet, acting more surprised and angry than hurt or deterred. "You think a few blows will stop me?" he snarled, scowling blackly up at the blind woman.

"I am not tired," she responded simply, a predatory smile flashing across her face. "But I do think we should take this outside before you ruin more chairs. The inns' owners would not be happy with that."

"I'm not going anywh--HRRK!"

Lhafa stepped close with baghan-quickness, wrapped both hands around the Sivefi's neck, then spun and hurled him through the door they'd used to enter the inn. She blinked after he crashed through the doorway, hinges groaning. "They are heavier than they sound," she commented in baghan, exiting the common room with the same care that she'd used while entering. The door swung closed behind her, shutting out a few choice words from Brandon.

Rai turned to Ju'jou as the sounds of scuffling continued outside. "Sorry," he said simply, lifting a shoulder in a shrug. "You hurt?"

The changer looked flabbergasted. "She... isfighting... for ... me?" he asked, too incredulous to speak quickly. His tail was slowly smoothing again, claws receding into his fingertips as he gradually straightened out of his ready-to-fight stance.

With a smile, Rai nodded. "She fight for all us. Friends." A particularly loud thump indicated a body had just hit the outside of the inn with considerable force; he glanced over, amused. "She good. Warrior. He no trouble."

"Myfriendswill..." Ju'jou cringed and looked around, then grasped Rai's thin wrist and led the magician towards what looked like a bar. He hopped onto a stool, crouching there with easy balance as it wobbled. He called a name that Rai didn't quite catch into the kitchen area, most of which was obscured by smoke and a few curtains.

A moment later, a Sivefi emerged from the back, wiping its hands on a stained cloth. "Ju'jou?" it asked, face breaking into an ugly smile.

The changer beamed, tail beginning to wag. Rai sidestepped the swishing appendage and leaned on the bar, eyeing the Sivefi. Judging by voice and build, it was a woman. The two natives began a rapid-fire conversation that he couldn't follow, so he turned to lean against the bar and survey the patrons. Most of them had gone back to their drinks, meals, and conversations, now that the commotion had been removed from the room. He saw three humans, two in a group and one in the corner, but none had Lightworker markings. He relaxed slightly.

"Rai!" Ju'jou hopped off the stool, grinning like a cat, and leaned against the magician. "Theyhavearoo--"

"Slow, slow, please," Rai interrupted, lifting up a hand and resisting the urge to lean away. The changer's physical closeness was unnerving, but he'd seen enough of how Lhafa interacted with him to know that he needed to tolerate it. Touch seemed to be very important to his people.

Ju'jou bobbed his head apologetically. "They. Have. Aroom. For. Youthree. And! They. Willbring. Food!" His tail wagged, thumping against the stool behind him. "They didnotmind thefight. He was abadcustomer," he added gleefully, moving quickly for the door. Rai trailed them, both entertained by his enthusiasm and relieved that they could have a meal.

The door opened on a scene of bloodless warfare. A carriage had been overturned, its equine standing nearby and looking perplexed; the carriage was missing a wheel, which had been shattered in bits across the ground. Passers-by had cleared a wide area that was still empty, although the fighting seemed to be over. Not just one, but several, unconscious Sivefi lay in thick-bodied lumps on the ground, sprawled amidst the ruins of a few wooden benches and a potted plant that had once lived on the inn's small porch.

Lhafa and Brandon stood in the middle of it all, seemingly unscathed; the ex-paladin was laughing loudly.