by Reed James
“My presence didn't help him. I was a human, proof he was different. He loved me when he should have loved an orc woman.”
I bit my lip.
“I think you'll discover he's eager to leave this behind. So don't use your differences as an excuse. Don't pull back thinking he won't be there for you. Don't be afraid. That is the worst thing you can do. We only get this one life before the next. Don't squander yours.”
~ * ~
Xerathalasia – Screaming Eagles' Tribal Lands, The Federation of Larg
We camped by the Fens that night. The others hated the stink of the rotting vegetation and fetid water. Death and decay owned the swamp. I lurked at the edges, staring into the mist as the sun set. The orc lands reminded me of home.
There were no trees or constant twilight, but it was natural. There were no artificial roads cut through the earth, no hills smoothed down for farm land or holes dug from stone houses. The constant scent of burning smoke and human waste didn't assault my nose.
It was an honest reek.
I savored taking watch. I watched the stars wheel. The only downside of our forest, we were often denied this beauty. We would only catch snatches of the stars through the canopy. But to see the entire sky spread out was a thing of beauty.
I hoped to share this with my wife and unborn daughter.
The night passed without event and we continued passing the Fens. We saw no sign of the Bloody Wyverns. By noon, we were back on the open tundra. Here, the grasses were shorter. No trees dotted the landscape. We were on the peninsula jutting out into the Tol Sea. We camped in the middle of a sea of grass.
The next day, we left the Bloody Wyverns lands and entered the Screaming Eagles. They controlled the land before Holy Murathi. Thrak expected the orcs to be to the southeast where the summer grazing was better.
We saw no sign of the Screaming Eagles when we camped that night. The next day was much the same. I was beginning to think, at times, that we were the only creatures that roamed these lands. There was nothing but grass to the world and the occasional herd of caribou.
It was a fiction. The earth teamed with burrowing creatures. I spotted signs of the openings of small rodents, and lone eagles, these not controlled by any orc shaman, ghosted above us, letting out mournful screeches.
I welcomed the solitude. I hoped we never saw another orc beside Thrak. I could go my life without having to kill another sentient creature with my bow or knife. Hunting monsters was so different than fighting skirmishes.
Our third day in Screaming Eagles was bright, cheerful. The sun rose early. There was far more daylight than night up here. We pressed on through the grass. Faoril and Thrak chatted while I took the lead.
As the sun reached its zenith above, I spotted a building on the horizon. The natural world had been defiled. There were other stone buildings. They were crude compared to the cities of the humans, made of huge stones taller than a man.
“Murathi is ahead,” I said.
“Holy Murathi,” breathed Thrak. His eyes were wide.
“The first piece of the High King's sword is there,” breathed Angela.
“We're going to do this,” Sophia squealed. “We are going to defeat the dragon.”
I nodded my head in agreement.
~ * ~
Knight-Errant Angela – Holy Murathi, Federation of Larg
“This place is huge,” I gasped as we rode through the ruins of Murathi.
“For thousands of years, my people built this. During the summers, it was a competition to see which clan could drag the most number of stones from the quarries in the Pogh Hills. This was before the world grew colder and the snows gripped the tundra.”
“Colder?” Sophia asked.
“Yes, there was a shift in climate not too long after the High Kingdom of Hamilten was shattered,” reported Faoril. “There are a number of theories, from Pater's sadness over his son's death to a change in how ocean currents move along the coast of the continent. Some even think it is Vedr punishing us for a transgression.”
“Oceans have currents?” Sophia blinked.
“Sailors have long known that,” Thrak said. “It hardly matters why, but the world grew slightly colder and the winters here became slightly longer. Enough that my people had to turn to survival. We had to let our great city fall to ruin.”
“These stones are immense,” I whispered. They were rough cut, chiseled out of granite, and stood as tall as my head when I sat astride my warhorse. “How did they move these stones?”
Faoril nodded in consideration.
“Trees. They deforested the plains to use the logs as rollers. When the climate changed, the trees that hadn't been used dwindled further.” Thrak patted one stone. “But even after so many years, it still stands.”
There was pride in his voice.
“Do you have any idea where the piece of the sword is hidden?” Sophia asked, throwing her gaze around.
“No. Somewhere in the great city. Maybe in one of the temples to the gods. Like Pater's temple.”
“Where are those?” Xera asked.
“Perhaps in the center. This is a holy place. Only the shamans ever visit.”
“So it's pretty safe?” Sophia asked.
“Only natural predators haunt it.”
“We should split into search teams,” Faoril said. “Thrak and myself, Sophia and Angela, and Xera, you should be fine on your own.”
Xera nodded her head.
“Why do you want to be alone with Thrak?” Sophia asked, a mischievous tone in her voice.
Faoril blushed. “I just...enjoy his company.”
“Oh, that's very obvious. 'Oh, Thrak, fuck me harder.'” Sophia giggled.
Faoril grinned then, in a babyish voice, spoke, “'Mistress, please spank my naughty rear. I've been such a bad girl.'”
“I have been a bad girl,” Sophia said in the same babyish voice.
“Let's first set up a camp before we split up to gallivant around the ruins,” I said. “In the center. The ground slopes upward. That might be the city's high point.”
Thrak nodded. “At the very least, we can survey the city and have an idea of where to look.”
We climbed the hill, passing the stones, some toppled over and lying half buried in the grass. Others stood tall, supporting other stones atop them. The scale boggled me. They were larger stones than I had seen in any castle, even if they were primitively hewn. Had the orcs used metal tools to shape the stone? It was hard to see the tool marks beneath the weathering of centuries of wind and rain, but they looked pounded by wide hammers.
Such brute strength had to be used.
We mounted the summit where a large building stood, the roof collapsed and buried in dirt and grass in the heart. We walked the edge, gazing out at the city spread before us. In the distance, to the northeast, the shimmer of the sea danced on the horizon. The wind blew, whistling through the stones.
The city spread for miles.
“This might take weeks,” Sophia groaned.
“There is the temple complex,” Thrak said. “See those buildings. Large and forming a circle about a square. I count nine buildings.”
“That's not enough temples,” Sophia said.
“We orcs revere Pater, Slata, Gewin, Vedr, Krab, Dauthaz, Rithi, Biaute, and Luben.”
“Then that's where we'll concentrate,” I said, dismounting from Midnight. “Let's set our camp then head out. We'll have a few hours to start our search.”
~ * ~
Thrak
I smiled as we ate our meal of dried trail rations. The sun set. Our first full day of searching hadn't found the sword. But we had cleared half the temples. If it was hidden in one, then, hopefully, we would find it tomorrow.
My wife's phantom pressed against me as I ate. She had a big smile on her face. How much longer would I have her? She couldn't keep manifesting. Phantoms eventually were driven mad by being corporeal but not alive.
So far, she showed no signs, but i
t was the reason she couldn't stay with me.
I held her. I would treasure every moment I had with her. Faoril sat down on the other side of me. I put my arm around her slim shoulders and pulled her close, too. She ripped at her jerky. I didn't say a word.
I wished time would stop right now. I hadn't been this...content since before Serisia died. I didn't want to lose it.
~ * ~
Fireeyes
As the sun sank, I stared at the ruins of Murathi. For the last day, Angela and her party haunted the ruins, searching for the piece of the High King's sword. I halted my army of orc zombies. Angela and her party had given me a second, even greater site of slaughter to swell the ranks of my undead.
They marched silently behind me, reeking of rot. The days were too hot for their bodies to last much longer. But it was enough. I dismounted while my simulacrum prepared our camp and our meal of porridge.
Tomorrow, while they searched the ruins, I would sweep in with my army and kill them. But the phantom of Thrak's wife would be my true weapon. As Angela and her companions battled with my undead, I would seize control of Serisia and unleash all the fury and power of a phantom upon them.
Confusion would reign. I would have my chance to end Angela and fulfill my contract with King Edward.
I was eager. Part of me wanted to sweep in now, but I was tired. I had pushed myself hard to catch up with Angela. Tomorrow, I would be doing battle. Faoril was not to be underestimated.
I needed my rest. I would not fail this time.
Chapter Twenty-Four: Threesome's Intimacy
Thrak – Ruins of Murathi, The Federation of Larg
“Are you sure you're okay?” Faoril asked as she rubbed at my shoulders. “That stone looked heavy.”
“Fine,” I sighed, savoring the way her fingers massaged into my shoulders, easing the tension. “It was only a glancing blow. The bruise hardly throbs at all.”
“You need to be careful,” Faoril continued.
Her fingers dug deep into the muscles of my neck, easing the pain of the dislodged stone that struck me. I leaned back into her naked breasts while she worked, my legs stretched out towards the fire. After our first full day searching the ruins, we still hadn't found the sword. But there were still four more temples in need of searching before we branched out.
“It's the orc in him, Faoril,” Serisia said. The phantom of my wife knelt between my thighs, her cool hand stroking up and down my cock. Every time she reached the tip, she would play with my bone cock piercing.
I savored the pleasure shooting through my body when she did that.
“Yes, you're such a big, strong, mighty orc warrior,” Faoril said. Her nipples were hard against my broad back. “But that doesn't mean you can take a half-ton rock caving your skull in.”
“But it's such a thick skull,” giggled Serisia. Her pale face stared up at me, framed by her soft-brown hair. The bone piercings dotting my dead wife's face turned her gentle, feminine expression into something both mischievous and ferocious.
What an amazing woman she was.
I stroked her brown hair as Faoril's fingers dug deeper. Even without the loose rock glancing off my right shoulder and back, searching the ruins was weary work. But the touch of the two women helped to ease the strain.
“Where did you learn to do that with your fingers?” I asked.
“Xera taught me.”
My dick throbbed, picturing the tall and busty elf running her hands over Faoril's body. Xera's ears twitched when she was enjoying herself. I would love to fuck her, but the elf always laughed when I brought it up, boasting that her cock was bigger than mine.
It sounded like quite the boast. When she went in heat next, I would love to see if it was true. Maybe while watching her fuck Faoril or Serisia. I groaned, closing my eyes and trying to imagine the elf with that cock.
“What are you thinking of?” Serisia asked. “Because your dick feels like it's made of Valyan steel.”
“He's thinking of Xera massaging me,” Faoril purred. “Does she have a dick in your fantasy?”
“A dick,” I groaned, unable to banish the image of Xera and her dick
“How naughty,” Serisia giggled, then she leaned down and took a long, slow lick around the crown of my cock. Her hand might be cool, but her tongue was hot. I groaned as the spirit finished her lick at the crown of my cock, her tongue digging into my slit to gather up salty precum. “Why does a woman with a dick make you so hard?”
“I've heard that a scholar named Ersaz dubbed it the Erotical Illusion,” Faoril answered. “We seek novel experiences, and there is nothing more novel to us dual-sex races than one of the hermaphroditic. Lush, female bodies sporting the most male of body parts. It's a powerful, contrasting, impossible image.”
“Maybe,” I groaned, the idea burning in my head.
“It's a hot idea for women, too,” giggled Faoril. “Trust me. Xera was popular in the Magery when she was in heat. And when she massaged me, she had her cock.”
I groaned, my dick throbbing as Serisia sucked it into her mouth. Her mouth bobbed up and down, her tongue swirling as she sucked. I closed my eyes, running my hand through her brown hair as I pictured Xera standing tall, her ears twitching as they poked out of her green hair, while a massive cock thrust from her groin.
“Gewin's mighty cock,” I growled.
My dick erupted into Serisia's mouth. The phantom gasped in shock. I never exploded so easily. Her mouth sucked hard, drinking down all my cum while I shuddered in Faoril's embrace. She hugged me, her lips nibbling on my neck while her soft hands rubbed at my scarred chest.
“Someone is excited,” Faoril purred as the last blast of my cum flooded Serisia's sucking mouth.
“Yes,” I growled.
Serisia lifted her mouth. She straddled my body, her hot pussy rubbing on my still hard shaft, and kissed Faoril over my shoulder. Out of the corner of my eye, I witnessed their pink tongues caressing, passing my salty cum back and forth between them.
It was another hot sight.
My dick throbbed beneath my wife's grinding pussy as she moaned into Faoril's mouth. My cock ached. Her flesh was so warm, and it was intoxicating watching their tongues pass my cum back and forth like a tasty treat.
My hands grabbed my wife's waist. I lifted her cool body, my dick pointing straight up, then slammed the phantom down on my cock. My wife and I both moaned as her flesh engulfed my cock. She was tight, gripping my dick while my shaft's piercing caressed her sheath, adding another tingle of pleasure racing up my cock.
“Slata's cunt,” Serisia gasped after breaking the kiss with Faoril. “He is insatiable tonight.”
“Guys always enjoy watching girls snowball cum,” Faoril grinned. “It's something female mages learn early on in their apprenticeships. Saoria and I used to do that and make them...” Faoril sighed. “Las-damn her. Will that never go away?”
“What?” I groaned as she shifted back, allowing me to lay my head on her lap.
“Saoria was my friend. Or so I thought. But when she passed the test, and I had my...misfortunate failure, she didn't need me anymore.” Faoril scooted more, then straddled my face. “I am too horny to waste time thinking on her. Eat my pussy, Thrak. I love it when you do. You make me cum so hard.”
“Because you taste so delicious,” I growled as she shifted forward, straddling me. I pulled down on her thighs, her pussy brushing my lips.
“Oh, your husband is talented,” Faoril gasped as my tongue swirled through her folds while her curly pubic hair tickled my lips. Her spicy flavor filled my mouth. “Thank you for training him.”
“He was an eager student,” Serisia gasped, her pussy clenching and relaxing on my dick as she rode me. “He was eager to learn everything at the University.”
Faoril giggled and then gasped as I shoved my tongue deep into her hot depths. My hands clenched her slim ass as she ground on my face. I moaned and grunted into her pussy as Serisia slid faster and faster on my cock, working he
r dripping pussy up and down while rolling her hips and swirling my dick through her folds.
“Mmm, yes, I love riding him,” Serisia gasped. “It's nice to be beneath him, but here, I get to control his cock.”
“I love the way your tits bounce,” groaned Faoril. “And these nipple piercings.”
“You have to pierce yours,” insisted Serisia.
Faoril gasped. I imagined my wife's fingers tugging on her nipple. Then Serisia let out a squeak of delight, her pussy clenching on my cock as Faoril must be returning the favor. Both women moaned as they rode my face and cock.
“They are fun to play with,” Faoril admitted.
Faoril shifted, leaning forward as she smeared her hot pussy on my face. The wet, smacking sound of kissing reached my ears. My dick ached as I pictured Serisia sliding her pussy up and down my cock while Faoril had her arms wrapped around my wife, kissing her hard.
“I love that sound,” I moaned between licks of Faoril's pussy. My hands squeezed harder on her ass, moving her pussy on my lips until I found her clit.
I licked the nub. She moaned into Serisia's mouth. My tongue swirled around the nub before I sucked her sensitive clit into my mouth. I sucked and nibbled on it while she squirmed, her ass flexing beneath my groping hands.
Her muffled moans grew louder. Her juices poured into my mouth as I kept nibbling and sucking. A violent shudder ran through her body. She heaved atop me as her orgasm burst inside of her. My dick throbbed in my wife's pussy as I made Faoril cum.
“Oh, yes,” Faoril gasped, breaking the kiss with my wife. “Slata's hairy cunt, yes. Oh, wow. Keep sucking on my clit. Oh, yes. I'm cumming again. Thrak, you wonderful orc. Oh, yes. Oh, damn.” Faoril squealed. “Serisia. Oh, suck my nipples. Gods, yes, that's wonderful.”
Serisia ground her pussy on my cock, only rising a few inches. She had leaned over to suckle on Faoril's nipples while grinding her clit against my pubic bone. Her groin slid through my wiry pubic hair as her pussy clenched and relaxed on my cock.
I moved my hands from Faoril's ass and grasped Serisia. I clenched hard and then slid her up and down my cock, working that hot, wet sheath on my dick. I ached inside of her. My balls boiled, eager to unload into her pussy.
