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I tied my pants on, “A one-night stand? A sexual encounter that lasts a single night, then both partners go their own way.”
Tavorwen peered at me curiously, “Why would you want such a limited encounter? Matrons have been known to end their lives if they outlive their masters. The desires of reproduction are so strong that once experienced, they are incapacitating if lost. Why would you wish to expose anyone to that so casually?”
I was making rapid mental notes. “The women where I come from did not experience these urges so powerfully. I will have to be more careful in the future. I hope I have not caused you any distress.”
Tavorwen laughed weakly, “No, I was merely caught off guard. It was an unexpected offer.” Then she peered at me again, as though seeing me anew. “Do… do you know if… could we bear a child together?”
I thought for a moment, what had the angel said. “I believe I was told I would be ‘compatible’. I’m not entirely sure what that means, but I guess so.”
Tavorwen blushed anew, “Would… Would you want matrons?”
I thought about it, “What all would that entail? I mean, I feel like that would be a lot of responsibility. That’s a lot of children to raise and if the matrons started to bicker…” I trailed off as I saw the shock on Tavorwen’s face.
“… is… is that not how this works?” I asked.
“… no.” Tavorwen stated definitively. “I can tell your society is very different from ours. I keep forgetting you aren’t from here and were raised differently.”
I sank into one of the surprisingly comfortable wooden chairs with some sort of cushion covering it and supporting the back.
“Why don’t you tell me more about how having matrons would be, and then I’ll decide. How about that?” I suggested.
“That sounds like a very good idea, I think.” She sat in one of the other chairs surrounding what appeared to be some sort of fireplace in the sitting room.
“As a Master, your responsibilities would be simply to engage in the… reproductive acts… with your matrons as often as you are physically capable.” Tavorwen began, “Now we understand males can only endure the rigors of such acts infrequently. As such, you would start with one or two matrons and engage them until such time as one of them becomes with child. Then you would take on more matrons as you prove capable of providing them with the seed they need.”
“Your matrons would care for your home, prepare your meals, and take care of all other domestic affairs as it is understood that a master engaged in such acts will be physically exhausted after performing his duties. Most masters become scholars and sages, learning magic and studying philosophy as such acts occupy their minds while leaving their bodies unencumbered and able to inseminate their matrons.” Tavorwen continued.
“So in exchange for inseminating them, your matrons would take care of everything else.” Tavorwen explained, “And an elvish child isn’t considered an adult until their one hundred and sixteenth birthday. But there are she-elves of various professions who would care for the children in the community nursery once they are weaned after their first birthday.”
I had listened intently, but I had a lot of questions.
“Okay, that sounds good. But a few questions, you.. um… forgive me, I’m not sure how to ask this. How often are elven males able to inseminate one of their matrons?” I asked.
“Well, the strain of being inseminated usually renders a matron exhausted for two or three days, and most matrons recover and are ready for insemination again in about a week.” Tavorwen attempted to clarify.
“Okay, so that’s how often the matrons are ready. How often is a male elf capable of inseminating his matrons, assuming he had multiple matrons ready to be inseminated?” I guided.
“Oh! I see. Yes, masters are expected to be able to inseminate one of their matrons every one to two days.” Tavorwen verified.
I gnawed lightly on a knuckle, trying to figure out how to explain what I was thinking.
“Are you not capable of that?” Tavorwen prodded with concern.
She watched my face, then her eyes widened. “You can… how often could you inseminate a female?”
“Um, depends on the day, but probably three to four times a day, if I’m not doing other things.” I admitted.
Tavorwen’s already wide eyes, widened further. “By the Gods….” she sat back shocked. She shook her head, “And you said you were told you’d be compatible with us?”
I nodded.
Tavorwen stared ahead, shocked. “Well, if you can do what you just claimed… any doubts the elders may have had about your value as a summons…. they should be gone.”
There was a knock on the door.
I rose and opened the door. Another she-elf stood outside the door. She had a leather apron on, with leather gloves tucked into her belt and a couple of hammers hanging from various locations on her belt and a large pouch with writing implements and a scroll case like the one the seamstress had used.
“Greetings,” the she-elf bid me happily, “The Council of Elders has asked me to come talk to you. Something about helping you smith a weapon from your homeland?”
“Oh, that would be great.” I acknowledged and guided her into the dining room so we’d have a table to work at.
Tavorwen was still sitting in front of the fireplace, thinking.Content © provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
“So, what kind of weapon are we talking about?” The elvish smith chuckled, “A sword, an ax, a polearm, a bow?”
I smiled, “It is called a rifle.”
The elf grinned, “So what type of weapon would it be closest too?”
I thought, “Are you familiar with crossbows?”
The elven smith tapped her knuckle on her cheek, “Yes, I believe so. They launch smaller bolts than a traditional arrow, but the spring steel arms can usually put enough force into them that they pack quite a punch. They’re easier to learn, but slower and more unwieldy than a standard long or short bow.”
I smiled, “So a rifle is what we call a firearm. It takes the idea of a crossbow to the extreme. Instead of spring steel arms, it uses rapidly expanding gas to expel an even smaller projectile with far greater force. It uses a tube shaped barrel to guide the projectile and allow the gasses time to transfer the force to the projectile that we call a bullet. And because the force is generated chemically, you can have the compound and bullet integrated into one cartridge, enabling faster reloading time as opposed to cranking on a crossbow to reload it.”
The smith scratched at her earlobe, “That sounds great and all, but it also sounds complicated. You have a schematic for this ‘rifle’ thing in that head of yours?”
“I have a good understanding of how they were constructed, and believe I can create those schematics for you if given paper and pen.” I assure her.
“As to your cartridges, we can talk to the alchemists and enchanters and see if they can’t make you something that will work. Let’s get started on schematics though.” The elf, Durithana I learned her name was, seemed to figure out the idea of the rifle, quickly enough. I did have to convert inches and feet to elven Notches and Knots. Notches and Knots were measurements that could easily be measured magically and could be placed on almost any sort of measuring tool. Ropes and rods being most common. She seemed to disbelieve that the bullet could get enough speed to accomplish anything of value. The scope confused her.
“Why would you make such a complex array of glass lenses? Surely this isn’t the best solution your people could come up with?” Durithana demanded incredulously.
“I assume magic can provide a better solution, but could you make it, just in case?” I almost begged. I wasn’t sure how making would work for this and with the distances involved in my sniping, bringing a high quality scope I could fall back on seemed wise.
“Indeed. I’ll make it. I’ll be sure to follow your schematics to the letter.” Durithana assured me. “As my mentor used to say, don’t try improving a tool until you understand how it works. And while I see how all the parts go together… I’m still not understanding how this is a weapon, or how you’d use it.”
“Thank you. So, how long do you think it will take to actually create this?” I asked, looking over the finished schematic.
Durithana scratched behind her long ears, “With a touch of magical shaping, I can probably have these together by morning.”
I was shocked. “You sure? Where I’m from it could take weeks…”
Durithana smirked, “Did they not have shaping magic?”
I laughed, “Well, no.”
Durithana tied her shoulder length hair up, and tied it in a hair band. “I’ll have it ready. Along with this ‘magazine’ for your cartridges. I’ll have to visit an alchemist tomorrow… and I’ll have to bring you along to make sure we get the compound correct.”
I sat back, “That would be great.”
Durithana smiled with confidence. “Well, let me go get started or I won’t have it done on time.”
Durithana smiled as she walked out, “How are your swords treating you, sister?”
Tavorwen was roused from her musings, “Oh, Durithana… They are performing admirably. Thank you.”
“Well, see you tomorrow to steal your summon for a bit.” Durithana laughed, “Off to work.”
Tavorwen watched as I walked back into the sitting room.
She licked her lower lip with anxiety, “Everything went well?”
I nodded, “Things are moving faster than I would have thought.”
Tavorwen nodded, “That’s good… ” She shifted uncomfortably. “About what we were talking about earlier… Can you prove you could inseminate three to four she-elves each day?”
I snorted, “What do you want me to do, masterbate three times in a day?”