To their delight, the two succubi found a suitable location in almost the first building they checked. While from the outside it looked fairly nondescript the interior was vishly furnished, albeit with a decided air of neglect. Kira and Chellise spent several hours cleaning up a front room that appeared to have once been a sitting room. Her pn, as Kira expined to Chellise while they worked, was to lure him into the building before attempting to fully enthrall him, so it would be best to avoid arousing his suspicions if possible.

  "I hope he has a couple drinks while he's gambling; it'll make things easier if he's drunk," she commented as they finished up. "Wish I had Gmour, but hopefully he won't notice my horns anyway. I'll keep the hood on my cloak up and open the front and with any luck he won't be able to take his eyes off my tits long enough to see that I'm not human."

  "Okay, I think that's it," Chellise said, looking around the room at the candles artfully arranged to create an intimate atmosphere. "Now all that's left to do is wait for him to show up."

  "He probably won't show for an hour or so yet, so do you wanna wait with me, or...?"

  Chellise considered, then shook her head. "No, I think I'll go keep an eye on him. That way I can warn you once he starts heading this way. Besides, it's better if I'm not here for it so there's less chance of putting him on his guard."

  "Okay, but be careful. Remember your cloak isn't foolproof."

  Chellise rolled her eyes. "I know, Kira. I've been sneaking to and from the cathedral every day, same as you. You're the one who'd better be careful."

  Rather than retorting, Kira just nodded. "I know. Good luck."

  "You too."

  And then they split up, Kira taking up a position just inside the old house where she had a good view of the street down which she expected the priest to approach while Chellise ducked into an alleyway, pulling her cloak around her as she did so.

  With nothing to do but wait, nervousness quickly settled upon the redhead. She had spoken confidently earlier, but in truth she had never actually attempted to enthrall anyone of a higher level than herself. Possible outcomes of their gambit chased each other around her mind, each one worse than the st, until Kira finally jumped to her feet and began pacing. "There's nothing to it," she told herself. "Carrow's got no chance against you. He's just a human, and you're a succubus, for fuck's sakes. You've got this. He takes one look at your boobs and you'll have him wrapped around your finger, easy."

  A tap on the window, Chellise's signal of the corrupt priest's imminent approach, made her jump. Hurrying to the door, Kira cracked it open and peeked out. Sure enough, in less than a minute, the man became visible, a tall, thin shape advancing towards her through the pools of mplight. Ensuring that her horns were as well covered as possible and her cleavage almost all the way down to the bottom of her breasts was tantalizingly exposed, she slipped out onto the doorstep and waited for him to come within earshot.

  As he came closer, Kira noted the priest's rexed posture and the self-satisfied smirk on his face. Clearly he had had a good night thus far. 'Okay Kira, here goes. You got this.'

  With a show of confidence she did not entirely feel, Kira stepped forwards into the light of one of the mps with a lustful smile on her face. "Well, hello there, handsome," she purred, putting some extra sway into her hips and jutting out her chest ever so slightly as she let loose with Seduction.

  The priest's initial suspicion at being accosted melted under the double assault of the charms of Kira's figure and the insidious influence of Seduction. With a lecherous grin, he replied, "Why, hello, little dy. Can I help you with anything?"

  Taking the cue from his dominant tone and posturing, Kira softened her own stance and voice. "Yes, you could. You see, I have a little problem, and I would be ever so grateful if a big, strong man such as yourself would assist me..." By this time she was close enough to smell the whiskey on his breath, though she noticed his eyes were still sharp and focused. Very focused, directly on her cleavage. Resisting the urge to smirk, she brought her hands together in a pleading gesture, incidentally pressing her breasts together and threatening to make them burst entirely out of her top. "Please, sir, won't you give a lonely girl a helping hand?"

  "But of course. What can I... assist you with?" His voice was by now practically dripping with lust, and his eyes roamed over her body greedily.

  "It's a very sensitive matter, sir. But if you would be so kind as to come inside for a moment, I'm sure you could ease my worries in no time. I'll make sure you're well satisfied for your trouble~"

  Kira took his arm, being careful to press her chest against him as she steered him into the house. She kept up a steady stream of innuendo as she did so to keep his attention focused on her instead of his surroundings, though she likely needn't have bothered as his eyes seemed glued to her, lingering on her breasts and lips with an undisguised hunger.

  "You see, I've been all alone, sir, and there's some pces I just can't reach on my own. What I need is a man's touch. Men such as yourself always have just the tool for the job, and you can reach every nook and cranny with those big, rough hands. When you get to work on my lodgings, I'm sure I'll absolutely melt under your technique. Just this way, and then you can get started on what has me aching. But don't worry, I won't let you leave without proper compensation~"

  Reaching the sitting room, Kira pushed Carrow down onto a couch, crawling atop him to sit on his hips and grind her shapely ass on his now rock-hard cock. His mouth opened, but it took a clear effort to produce intelligible speech. "...So what is your... your problem, ...miss?" His eyes had begun to cloud over, Seduction tightening its hold moment by moment.

  Kira bent low over him, pressing her breasts against his chest as her hips continued to gyrate atop his erection. With her face only a few inches from his, she stared into the priest's eyes, whispering softly, "That's it, give me your assistance. Just a little more. Don't bother thinking about it, just keep looking into my eyes. Doesn't it feel good? Don't you want to just let go? Come on, give it to me, don't hold back. That's it..."

  Suddenly Carrow's hips jerked spasmodically upwards and he groaned softly as he came in his clothes, the st awareness leaving his eyes as he did so. Kira straightened with a long sigh. "Got you, asshole. Now, what do you want most?"

  A soppy, svish look came over the man's face as he answered, "I want to serve you, mistress."

  The red-haired succubus dismounted her new thrall, wrinkling her nose at the wet spot evident at his crotch. "Shame I have to make you cum to enthrall you. You definitely don't deserve it, but oh well.

  "Okay, listen up. First of all, when you leave this building, you will forget everything that happened in here. In fact, you won't remember me approaching you outside, either. As far as you'll know, you just went home from your gambling just like you always do, and nothing unusual happened at all. Understand?"

  With the same sycophantic expression, Carrow replied, "Yes, mistress. When I leave this building I will not remember meeting you. I will also not remember anything that occurred while I was here. All I will remember is that I am on the way home from gambling, as usual."

  "Good. Okay, do you remember an elf named Safara?"

  "Yes, mistress."

  "What happened to her after the Saintess disappeared?"

  "She was packaged for transport to Eldfall, mistress."

  "What do you mean, packaged?"

  "Just that, mistress. Sves must be packaged before transport to avoid damage or escape."

  "Expin what exactly you do when you package a sve," Kira demanded, frowning fiercely at the subjugated priest, who had not moved an inch from his lying position on the couch, instead only turning his head so he could see Kira.

  "I don't package sves, mistress. Grivor Tatum handles that task here in the capital."

  Kira growled in exasperation. "Then expin what he does when he packages a sve."

  "Yes, mistress. Firstly, he acquires one of our holding cases-"

  "What's that?" Kira interrupted.

  "It is a box usually about six feet long, three feet wide, and two feet deep, with restraints and braces to securely hold a sve while in transport. When properly secured, the sve is unable to move any part of their body more than an inch or two, is unable to make any noise with their body or mouth, and is unable to perform any magic or use any abilities. The sve can be fed and their waste cleaned without fully opening the holding case, and some cases even have holes through which they can be fucked, if a handler wishes to test their cargo or simply relieve themselves. Optionally, a sve can be fitted with devices to stimute them sexually, if a customer prefers that their sve arrives ready to use."

  "So he puts them in one of those?"

  "Yes, mistress."

  Kira took a moment to digest this. Finally she asked, "So he put her in one of those ...holding cases? Then what happened to her?"

  "She was sent to the Inspector, mistress."

  "Who's the Inspector?"

  "I don't know, mistress. I just know that he inspects each sve captured here in the city and determines their value, based on race, temperament, sexual history, age, appearance, and several other factors."

  "Do you know where he is?"

  "No, mistress. I only know where the packages are sent for him to inspect."

  "Well, before you leave you're going to write down exactly how to get there, understand? So, where is Safara now?"

  "Yes, mistress. By now Safara is on the way up the Phoebe to Eldfall. Being a high elf and a virgin, she was particurly valuable, so a special shipment was arranged for her."

  The indifference in the man's voice made Kira want to kick him in the face, but she restrained herself for the moment. "Do you know where she'll go once she reaches Eldfall?" she asked.

  "No, mistress, only that she has a buyer waiting for her once she reaches her destination."

  "Do you know who this buyer is?"

  "No, mistress."

  Kira rubbed her forehead, regretting that she had turned down Katari's offer to help with the interrogation. The oni had clearly been tired, but she felt now that she could have used her help anyway, if only as moral support. "Okay, you're going to tell me everything you know about this trafficking ring you're a part of, understand?"

  Carrow's expression flickered briefly, but he replied in the same tone. "Yes, mistress." And then he began.

  At the end of half an hour Kira felt like bashing her head into a wall. It was true that Carrow only wanted to be of use to her now that he was enthralled by her, but his entranced mind seemed incapable of judging what information she actually wanted and what she didn't care in the least about. So instead of sticking only to the details that would actually be useful to the succubus, he inundated her with useless information, try as she might to specify what she actually wanted. Finally she gave up and just let him talk, picking out the knowledge which she wanted from the endless stream of information herself.

  The salient details, as best as she could make out, went something like this: the trafficking ring was actually an extremely extensive organization, with branches in practically every major city on the continent and even contacts in the Barrens, which was predominantly Dark-race territory. It didn't seem to have a name, which she supposed was to make it harder to track down, but it did have kingpins in each city who coordinated their respective branches. Actual details about who was who were scarce. Carrow only knew of five people he was positive were a part of the ring; himself, Grivor Tatum, Bishop Tavill ("Ha!" Kira excimed under her breath), the Inspector, and the kingpin, who he only knew as 'the Boss'. ('My boss is better,' Kira thought waspishly.)

  The capital's branch of the ring both abducted people and sent them elsewhere, usually northwards by river or east by sea, and also received sves of all kinds which were then sold to certain carefully vetted nobles and other wealthy citizens. One detail which caught Kira by surprise was that Dark-races were commonly bought and sold by the ring; usually beast-races, occasionally another race such as a harpy or a kobold, and on the rare occasions on which they could procure one, a succubus would always guarantee a high price. When she asked how it was that no one ever escaped, Carrow said that each sve was embzoned with a brand which sealed away their magic and abilities, and made them weak enough to be easily manhandled. Thus the few who did escape were easily recaptured by the trackers each branch kept for just such a purpose. Sves were also often trained before being shipped to the capital, so retively few even tried to escape.

  Sex sves were by far the most common kind handled by the trafficking ring, but occasionally a sve destined for bor or some other purpose would pass through. According to Carrow, recently the ring had even been thinking of branching out into other illicit substances, but had made a misstep in implementation, which had been what had gained Princess America's attention to begin with.

  When Carrow was finally done talking, Kira sat down heavily on an empty chair.

  "...Fuck."

  The answers she got out of Carrow were supposed to make things easier, not ...this! She rested her chin in her hands and stared dully at a guttering candle which had almost burned down. Safara seemed further out of reach than ever. Somewhere on the river between Mavenia and Eldfall, and once she got there, who knows where she would be sent next? "I'm sorry, boss," the red-haired succubus whispered, "but I don't know if we can save her by ourselves. We need you."

  Before Carrow left, Kira ordered him to list every building he knew was being used by the trafficking ring, and to write down minute instructions for reaching and accessing each one. Then she sent him on his way. She was sorely tempted to hit him in the face, if only to relieve her pent up feelings, but knowing that a broken nose could lead to questions which might break the memory block she had imposed, she reluctantly let him go unharmed. Her hold on him was none too strong already and straining it more than necessary would be nothing other than stupid.

  It being by now quite te in the night, Kira decided to return to camp and share her findings with her companions. Both were gd to hear that the pn had gone off without a hitch, but when they heard what she had learned from the priest, there was a shocked silence.

  "But how are we supposed to catch up with her now?" Chellise finally asked into the silence. "Isn't Eldfall that city on the shores of Lake Wrathburn?"

  Kira nodded. "Yep, that's the one."

  "But isn't that over a hundred miles away?"

  "Try three hundred."

  Chellise's mouth fell open. "But... there's no way we can cover that distance in time to save her."

  "Even if we could, how would we locate her? These 'holding cases' must be entirely unremarkable from the outside. There must be several thousand packages of roughly that size that passes through the port at Eldfall every week. It would be like searching for a pebble in a ndslide," Katari pointed out.

  "But we're not just going to give up on her, are we?" Chellise asked, looking between Kira and Katari.

  Kira said nothing, staring into the fire with brooding eyes, her knees pulled up to her chest. Katari looked away rather than meet Chellise's gaze, her eyes falling on the empty space where Fenrir normally sat. The sight seemed to stiffen her resolve. "No," she said decidedly. "We will not. What we will do is make our way to Eldfall as quickly as possible and then we will pick up the trail there. We will find her, if we have to search every house in the city."

  "And what if she's already gone?" Kira spoke, still staring at the dancing fmes. "We're never going to find her like that."

  Katari looked at Kira. "Then what do you suggest we do?"

  Kira finally looked up. "I don't know," she admitted helplessly. "I don't know what to do. I can't think of any way to save her."

  "Are you giving up?" Katari asked softly.

  "No, I just... ...I hate feeling helpless like this!" Kira burst out. "We're all Safara's got, and we've failed her! She's gone, likely to be the pything of some evil bastard, and we're sitting here completely useless!"

  Wordlessly, Chellise scooted over to sit next to Kira and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Kira involuntarily quivered at the touch, the gesture of sympathy and affection meaning more to her than she ever would have expected. Wrapping her arm around the younger succubus in turn, she rested her head on the mint-green shoulder offered to her.

  "I'm sorry," she said finally. "I shouldn't have said that. It's just that I was counting on getting more out of Carrow than just 'she's already gone'. I made a promise to myself to never let this kind of thing happen again, and now it is, and I don't know how to stop it."

  Katari moved to sit on Kira's other side and csped Kira's hand in hers, shoulder against shoulder. For several long minutes the three stared into the fire in silence, taking comfort from each other's presence.

  At length Kira stirred. "Thanks, girls. I really needed that."

  "Feel better?" Chellise asked softly.

  "A little, yeah." Kira cleared her throat. "So, the only way I see of finding her before next century is by finding out exactly where she's being sent, and the only way I can think of doing that is by getting access to the head of the trafficking ring in the city, or whoever handles the transactions. And the only way I can think of doing that successfully is by working with the citadel people to overturn the ring."

  "Once we do, it will not be long before the other branches notice, so we will have to move quickly lest they go to ground," Katari pointed out.

  "Right," Kira responded. "I think I should join you at the citadel. I'll be more useful helping directly, and I look human enough that maybe they won't have too much of a problem with me."

  "And what am I supposed to do, sit around and twiddle my cunt?" Chellise asked indignantly. "If you go, then I want to, too! I care about Safara just as much as you do!"

  "Yeah, but Chell, you look less human. Humans sometimes make a big deal out of someone looking different, even if it's completely arbitrary. We don't want to push them too far, it was taking a pretty big chance even just sending Katari."

  ""Then you shouldn't go either. Do you really think the fact that you have a human skin tone will matter that much when they see your horns and tail? They'll still think of you as a succubus."

  Kira looked helplessly over at her other companion. "Katari?" she asked.

  "It is not the worst idea..." the small oni said slowly. "Cassia mentioned that she would like to meet you, and she also mentioned that the princess would likely be even more eager to meet a demon than she is. And as for Ser Brandis, if we can assure him that you will both behave, then I do not think that he will attempt to overturn the decisions of his companions."

  Kira groaned. "Damnit Katari, you're supposed to be on my side here. Alright, fine, fine. We'll both go, but if they kill us I reserve the right to say I told you so."

  TheBestofSome