JTSS 1-184

Jaina sighed in contentment as she woke to find Gisley, Evalynn, and Umtha, of all people, curled up in a pile of naked women. She wasn't sure when the goblin woman had slipped in, but she wasn't surprised. Umtha had been spending more and more time with Jaina recently, making love and dancing for Roric. She was playful and serious at the same time, always asking questions about Jaina's mimic nature.

Umtha lay over the pack, indicating she had arrived late. Jaina wondered why she wasn't in bed with Hannah and Frank but never bothered to ask. All she cared about was those loving green arms and the eager kisses Umtha was famous for. Jaina turned enough to pull Umtha deeper into the pile. Gisley woke enough to move over and lay over Umtha, trapping her inside.

“Hey, sweety,” Jaina whispered as Umtha yawned and wrapped her arms around her. “When did you sneak in?”

“Late,” Umtha admitted as her green eyes still looked sleepy.

“Love, why were you out so late?” Jaina asked. “I am sure Hannah wanted to feel your loving arms. I bet Quinny misses you.”

“I had stuff to do,” Umtha said before yawning.

“Well, I enjoy waking up to surprises,” Jaina said before kissing her cheek. Umtha let out a little sigh as her tail curled along Jaina's side. Gisley wrapped her up tightly, trapping her between Evalynn and herself. Jaina could hear Gisley kissing Umtha's shoulder and feel the succubus woman's hands flexing as she smiled.

“So what are you doing today?” Jaina asked as Umtha's tail began to twitch. Gisley rubbed her back and kissed along her shoulder in a playful display of affection.

“I was going to spend it with you if that's okay?” Umtha said, looking up with big eyes. “Is it okay?”

“Of course it is,” Jaina replied and stroked her head. “I love having my goblin succubus to play with.”

“I like having her too,” Gisley said as she looked up with a smile. “She’s fun.”

“Have you two been doing naughty things behind my back?” Jaina asked as Gisley smiled even wider. “Oh, you bad girls.”

“Where are Roric and Chandice?” Umtha asked as Evalynn moved and joined the pile more tightly.

“They are in bed,” Evalynn replied as she stroked Umtha’s rear and down her tail. “They wanted a night alone. We girls got the harem chamber cushions.”

“I like being in a harem,” Umtha said. “I think every girl should be in one.”

“Ha,” Jaina laughed and hugged the sweet woman. “I don’t think there are enough girls for every man to have a harem, but I like the sentiment.”

“Can we go to my pond?” Gisley asked as she began to swing her feet. “I want to show Umtha my secret grotto.”

“If master doesn't need us, then of course,” Jaina said as the girls began to disassemble. In moments, they were sitting up, stretching with yawns and baring full breasts. Umtha stood and rolled her shoulders, her long green hair sweeping a back with few tattoos.

“You aren’t getting many tattoos,” Jaina said as she brushed Umtha’s hair aside. “These are all the basic ones.”

“I don’t play in the forest much,” Umtha replied as she looked over her shoulder. “I have other things to do.”

“Other things?” Jaina questioned. “Sweety, what are you up to?”

“Just goblin things,” Umtha said as she turned to face Jaina. “I still run the goblin stuff for them, so they don't have to do it.”

“Oh, does that bother you?” Jaina asked, noting a sadness in Umtha's tone. Umtha said it didn't used to bother her, but lately, she wished Hannah, and particularly Frank, would show more interest. The goblins thought of them as their heroes, and it would do them a lot of good to show some effort.

“You need to tell them that,” Jaina urged as Evalynn went to check on Roric and Chandice. “Don't assume they never want to do more with the goblins. I know in the beginning they were trying to keep a lot of pressure off of Hannah, but that's all changed.”

“Has it, though?” Umtha asked. “She's got more things on her shoulders than ever. She's got a zillion books to read, meetings with the harem girls helping with research, and she's working on what to ask the necromancer skull. On top of all that, she's trying to be more of what Frank wants while keeping tabs on our neighbors and their plans. Now they are working on an adventure contest to help bring our neighbors in.”

“Yeah, we heard about that,” Jaina nodded as she recalled the plan to invite neighboring lands to send in adventuring teams to compete for prizes. Surely, that was taking up a lot of Frank and Hannah's time, in addition to serving in Blackbast's temple, the glory hole, and general harem work.

“I suppose they are busy,” Jaina agreed.

“Yeah,” Umtha agreed as she looked down. “Sometimes I feel not needed.”

“Alright, enough of that,” Jaina said as she put an arm around the goblin woman. “Hannah loves you very much. She loves you so much that she relives your goblin wedding in the dream.”

“You know about that?” Umtha said as her long ears perked up.

“Yes, Gisley showed me one of the dreams, and it was beautiful,” Jaina said, causing Umtha to blush. “Oh, you look so cute when you blush.”

“She does,” Gisley agreed as she shook out her hair. “Do you think Roric will let us go play?”

“Evalynn went to ask,” Jaina said as she looked to the hall. “I am sure he won't mind unless he already has plans.”

“I want to play in my pond,” Gisley said. “We can go swimming and climb the falls to the hidden grotto.”

“You have a hidden place?” Umtha asked as Gisley nodded and tried to describe it. Umtha wanted to see it and joined Gisley as the two began to bounce excitedly.

“They are like little girls,” Jaina laughed.

“I am assuming you are talking about the fairy and goblin,” Evalynn said as she joined Jaina.

“Very much so,” Jaina replied. “So, what did master say?”

“Have fun, but be back by noon,” Evalynn explained.

“Then off we go,” Jaina said, not bothering to put anything on. Only Evalynn wore a wrap at her waist as the other three happily walked into the outer camp naked. Gnolls looked up with approving stares, smiles, and suggestive whines to let the girls know what they were thinking. Thankfully, none of them but Evalynn was in any real danger of being touched, and they arrived at a pair of mossy trees with a flowing vine. Stepping between the trees carried them across the forest, delivering them to another pair of similar trees on a small hidden trail near Gisley's pond.

Gisley was eager to show Umtha everything, even pointing out which glowing mushrooms she had named. To Gisley, everything had life and deserved to be treated like it might suddenly talk. It was one of her magical qualities that made her so wonderful to be around. It wasn't long before they reached the water and spotted the first of her little fairies. It was less than a foot tall, with wings like a dragonfly and the body of a beautiful woman. She glowed with a soft blue light and fluttered up to Gisley to chirp at her happily.

“She's pretty,” Umtha said, and the fairy reacted. She flew right up to Umtha's face and kissed the tip of her nose. Then she floated away, singing a soft, magical song and leaving a sparkling trail.

“Hannah gave them to me,” Gisley said. “They help maintain the pond area and keep it magical.”

“Technically, Gwen gave them to you, but it was Hannah's idea,” Evalynn corrected, but Gisley shrugged and took them to a mossy shoreline beside a crystal blue pond. They could see the lodge on the far side and the falls of water cascading around a statue's upper torso. It was an image of Gisley with her breasts rising from the water and her arms lifted high. Her hands were raised palm up, giving Gisley someplace to sit when she sang. The statue was over thirty feet tall, built into the face of a cliff that was part of the waterfalls.

“You're not shy about people seeing your naked body,” Umtha said as she admired the statue's breasts.

“You just try to put clothes on her,” Evalynn laughed. “I swear she hates it.

“I like pretty clothes,” Gisley countered. “But I like it when people see me and stop to take me in.”

“I like that too,” Umtha agreed as they walked along the shore, following a path through colorful trees. Lillypads with colorful flowers grew along the pond's edge, and in places, banks of tall marsh reeds reached up with crowns of purple flowers. Every nook and cranny had something fanciful to see, from colorful mushrooms to little stone totems carved by the fairies. Even now, they could hear soft flutes as the fairies played enchanting music hidden away in the thick foliage around the pond.

“I love this place,” Umtha said as Gisley took her hand. “Goblin stuff is more practical than beautiful.”

“I don't know,” Jaina said. “I only caught a glimpse of the world outside that dream, but your village looked beautiful in a primitive and rustic way.”

“We don’t grow flowers everywhere,” Umtha said as she gestured to the blankets of color around them. “And we don’t make hidden shrines to beauty.”

“Then maybe it was lucky you came here,” Gisley said. “So you could learn about these things and use them.”

Jaina smiled as Umtha nodded in acknowledgment. Maybe the goblin woman was fortunate indeed to have come to a world that opened their eyes to the possibilities. In the same way that Hannah had come to see the possibilities of being happy in this world, so too had Umtha.

“Shall we go swimming?” Gisley asked as they reached a place on the shore where the smooth stone of a path went right up to the water and down into it in steps. Umtha nodded, and all four girls waded into the water, splashing and playing. Fairies came out to play little tricks, causing water spouts to spray down on squealing girls. Umtha surprised them by splashing back, demonstrating that she had elemental powers that included water.

“So you can control the elements?” Evalynn asked.

“I could do much more if I took the collar off,” Umtha explained. “But I can control the elemental spirits of the world and a little bit of the weather.”

“That's neat. Can you make it rain?” Gisley asked with a hopeful smile.

Umtha shook her head and pointed to the collar. She admitted she could cause a small shower that lasted a few minutes, but she couldn't evoke it with the collar on. Evalynn asked if she ever took it off, and Umtha looked aghast. She loved being in Hannah's collar and considered it more binding than her wedding ring. She would never take it off unless absolutely necessary, and then she would be sad.

“So, it’s Hannah you truly enjoy being bound to,” Jaina said as she floated in the water. “It must be terrible having all those memories of her that she can’t remember.” Jaina wished she hadn’t brought that up as Umtha’s face suddenly shattered. She turned away and swam for a rock, using it to support herself as she began to cry.

“Oh, Umtha, I am so sorry,” Jaina said as she swam up behind her. “I keep forgetting how painful the memory thing is for you.”

“I wish she remembered,” Umtha sobbed. “She loved me so much.”

“She loves you just as much now,” Jaina insisted, rubbing her shoulder. “Look at how she shares that goblin wedding with you.”

“I know, but I just want it to be like it was,” Umtha said.

“Sweety, she is going to get her memories back,” Jaina insisted. “Look at what they learned from Legeis's machine. They now have proof of what is preventing her from recovering them, and Chandice is working on a magical solution. Legeis is modifying the machine to be stable at much higher power levels, and they will find a way to break through.”

“If you want her to remember so badly, then why are you so opposed to her asking the skulls for information?” Evalynn pressed.

Evalynn was, of course, referring to Hannah's necromancer power to speak to the dead. So long as she had the skull of a dead player, she could create a ghost of the person who could answer questions provided they knew the information before they died. The process was taxing, and the skulls would rapidly begin to deteriorate, usually leaving the necromancer to ask two to three short questions.

However, Hannah had access to essence power and, with the aid of a necromancer's circle, could prolong the deterioration for several more minutes. She had in her possession two skulls belonging to deceased paladins, as well as one skull that belonged to a long-dead necromancer. She was compiling a list of questions to ask and researching how to boost the effect. Umtha was opposed to Hannah asking some of the questions because she feared what Hannah might learn. Poor Umtha had been given a terrible task by Hannah's past incarnation. She was to remember everything, yet was forbidden to tell Hannah for fear that learning the truth too quickly would drive her mad.

“She doesn't want to ask them about our relationship,” Umtha explained. “She wants to ask them about what she was doing and how Kevin was involved. I was told to keep her from going after Kevin until she was ready, but she never told me what ready was.”

“So you have to guess,” Jaina said with a nod. “I am sorry for you.”

“I just don't want to fail her,” Umtha said with fresh tears. “I failed her once already, and she lost everything. I can't see her go through that again; I can't!”

“Sweety, calm down,” Jaina urged, taking her into her arms. Umtha cried on her shoulder as the others gathered around to help support her. It was a terrible story of a love gone so horribly wrong that it led to a war that decimated the world. The once lovers lashed out at one another, escalating their violence and inflicting terrible wounds out of spite. Whatever Hannah lost in that conflict left her so scared that the secret of it was buried to protect her. Only Umtha knew, or at least they thought she did, as Umtha was nearly impossible to get answers out of. One thing they did know was that Umtha had once been an evolved goblin like she was now. The visitors themselves condemned the role the goblins played in that terrible conflict. All the goblins were reset to eliminate them as a threat, turning them back into the short green creatures most people knew them as. In addition their ability to speak common was garbled so that no matter how hard they tried to communicate, it came out broken. It was only when they slowly reached the point where they could evolve back into the taller, more human-like goblins that their language was restored. It was a terrible handicap that left players treating them like unintelligent monsters.

“Shhh,” Jaina urged as she carried the woman through the water to a little bench just below the surface by Gisely’s statue. There she sat, stroking the woman’s head until she calmed. Jaina smiled as three of the small fairies fluttered out with flowers to put in Umtha’s hair. They could see she was upset and wanted to help in some small way.

“I need the crown to work,” Umtha said at last. “I need it to wake her up to our past.”

“The goblin crown you gave her on her wedding night,” Jaina nodded. She knew the story of how Hathlisora had given the crown to Umtha and told her that it would restore Hannah's memories of their relationship. Umtha did exactly as instructed, giving Hannah the crown the night she married Frank. It added Umtha to that marriage, making her a wife, but it failed to restore Hannah's memories. That wound had dug deep into Umtha's soul and she never truly recovered. How could the plan have gone wrong? Why had the crown failed?

“Chandice and Legeis will figure that out,” Gisley said as she brushed Umtha’s cheek. “And they will get it to work.”

“I hope so,” Umtha said as she closed her eyes and laid her head on Jaina’s shoulder. “I love her so much.”

“And she loves you,” Jaina assured. “I have heard her call you her little dark angel and see how she smiles when you're in her arms. She genuinely loves you.”

“I'm sorry,” Umtha said as she leaned back. “We were having fun, and I got all emotional.”

“Sweety, you never have to be sorry about the burden you carry for Hannah,” Jaina said. “Now, do you want to see Gisley's secret place?” Umtha nodded with a little smile, and Gisley took her hand, eager to lead the way. Jaina breathed a sigh of relief that the tense moment had ended and joined Evalynn to follow the girls.

“I didn’t realize that keeping Hannah’s secrets was hurting her so much,” Jaina whispered.

“Nor did I, but I suppose we should have,” Evalynn replied. “If you think about it, Umtha's lover dies and is gone for who knows how long. Then, one day, she's alive again but doesn't remember Umtha or the love they shared. The poor thing has to watch the woman she once loved make terrible mistakes because she promised to protect her by not telling her. Umtha holds on strong because she has the key to restoring that love and bides her time until the day she can do it. But that day comes, and it fails, leaving her alone with her secrets.”

“Oh, god,” Jaina groaned. “Now that you put it like that, I feel like an idiot.”

“Hannah will remember,” Evalynn encouraged. “Half the harem is working on the project now. Sooner or later, a way to restore her will come. I just hope Hezzrigozza is wrong about what will happen when that day comes.”

Jaina nodded as Gisley led them to a little path up the cliff face and through the waterfalls. It passed behind them, and then the head of her statue, then up some carefully hidden steps. High above the head, it entered a cave hidden behind more water and went straight to a round chamber.

Umtha looked around in awe at the room, which had smooth stone walls decorated with tapestries of the various girls, including herself. A hole high in the ceiling allowed sunlight in, and glowing mushrooms grew along the outer ring. In the center of the room was a single tree with golden leaves and orange fruit that grew in clusters like grapes. A massive bed was set under those strange fruits with fine spider silk blankets.

There was a small pile of glittering treasure that Gisley said were gifts from her various lovers. She went to one that she was immensely proud of, a small magical harp that would play songs on its own.

She told it to play Hannah's lullaby, and it floated into the air and began to strum to the soft song. Then she took Umtha's arms and led her to the bed to snuggle and kiss. Jaina and Evalynn climbed in with them, the four becoming a tangle of limbs as they curled up.

“Your room is pretty,” Umtha said as the harp played the soothing song.

“I come here to think,” Gisley said. “And you can hear Hannah sing really clearly here.”

“It’s very nice,” Umtha replied.

“Oh, show her the room's true magic,” Jaina laughed, knowing full well Gisley was being evasive. Gisley smiled and waved a hand, and suddenly, the sunlight turned to moonlight. The walls of the room faded away, becoming a black sky full of stars. The bed became like a boat, floating in an endless ocean of stars and inky black water. Umtha sat up in wonder as Gisley explained what they were looking at.

“It’s a dream room,” Gisley said. “Remember the tapestries? Well, if any of those girls depicted had been asleep and dreaming we would see a shimmering mirror that showed their dream. I come here sometimes just to watch you play in your dreams and add things to make them wonderful.”

“You watch Hannah and I?” Umtha asked.

“I watch you all the time,” Gisley replied, pointing to the sky around them. “And watch this; I can replay a dream.”

A circle of light appeared in the darkness, and beyond it, Umtha could see the temple room where she and Hannah kissed beside a stone altar. It was one of the many dreams about their goblin wedding and the moment they became wives. Jaina watched as Umtha smiled and reached for the image as if trying to claw back a happy memory.

“See,” Jaina said as she huddled with Umtha. “Hannah did that because she loves you and wanted to show you how much.”

“I know she loves me,” Umtha replied as a tear rolled down her cheek. “And she’s so beautiful, but you should have seen her before. She was a goddess among mortals, and everyone who knew her either loved or feared her.”

Jaina wasn't sure how to respond to that or what Umtha was even trying to say. There was a strange subtext to saying people either loved or feared Hannah. She let it go, assuming it had been a slip of tone and hugged the woman tighter. Gisley changed the dream to one of Frank, showing Umtha an image of Frank in his ghoul form carrying Umtha on his shoulder and picking her flowers.

“What is this?” Umtha asked as she leaned closer.

“A dream Frank has,” Gisley replied. “He dreams about you a lot. Usually you two are alone doing something together, but he likes to pick you flowers.”

“He dreams about me?” Umtha said as more tears rolled down her cheeks.

“Sweety, you are so loved,” Jaina whispered. “And we love you too: Gisley, Breanne, Roric, Chandice, and me. We all love our goblin cutie, who carries the greatest burden of love any person has ever been asked to carry.”

Umtha turned in Jaina’s arms and returned the hug as she smiled. “Thank you for showing me this. I don’t know why you care so much.”

“Sweety, we are family,” Jaina answered. “This harem has become so much more than a sex thing. We are all part of something special and magical that unites far greater than any ceremony can do. That paw print on your rear is a badge that you belong to the greatest family in the world.”

Umtha nodded as the girls snuggled in and shared a moment of love. Jaina was happy they were together but troubled by Umtha's comments. Why was she spending more time with them, and why was she so upset that Hannah didn't remember their previous relationship? Surely, the one she had now was just as strong, but that didn't seem to help. Umtha wasn't going to be happy until Hannah remembered what they had before.

Jaina knew Umtha had nothing but hope in her heart for a better future, but she was reminded of something. Umtha and the rest of the goblins wanted to go home, and Hannah had promised to take them. She wondered if Umtha still held on to that dream of escape and that perhaps that was what Hannah needed to remember. If that was the case, she didn't look forward to the day when Hannah did remember and had to choose between the life she had come to love or the promise she made to her lover.