"Thanks, Little Deer."
Feeling awkward, the brave put the bowl next to them and left. Scooping up some of the poultice, she patted it on the wounds and then pulled the sleeve back on the woman's shoulder. Afterward, she slid over onto her bed of skins, put her arm over her face and closed her eyes, giving the woman privacy. Moments later, she heard the woman moving and then a hand gently clasped her arm and pulled it down. Tanc stared into her eyes looking for something; what, she didn't know. When the woman started cleaning the slashed cheek, she remained still, showing no sign of pain.
"What's your name?" Tanc asked softly.
"Raven."
"Thank you, Raven."
That night Raven curled up close to Tanc for warmth and for comfort.
CHAPTER 14
IN TIME, Raven and Tanc grew comfortable with each other. Tanc provided her food and protection and Raven prepared Tanc's meals, washed and mended her clothes and took care of her injuries, which were rare. After the run-in with Gray Cloud, Tanc had moved her into her own tent, but kept her word to Gray Cloud. Raven would perform the normal duties expected of a brave's woman — with one exception. Gray Cloud was forbidden to touch her. Tanc had made herself clear on that matter.
One night, during an especially cold winter, Raven developed a fever. Delirious and shivering, she clung to Tanc's body, trying desperately to warm her own. It was one of the few times the demoness broke her vows and turned up her body temperature enough to comfort the woman.
Raven awoke slowly, trying to remember what had happened. Opening her eyes, she stared into the first green eyes she had ever seen. Within their depths, she would have sworn she saw fires blazing.
"How are you feeling?" Tanc asked.
"Better," Raven said, feeling shy.
"Good. You were very sick and cold."
"I don't remember."
Raven shifted slightly, not sure what else to say.
"Are you well enough to get up?"
"Yes," Raven replied and started to move.
"No. Stay," Tanc said. "I was just asking."
Smiling, Raven settled back on the animal skins and reached up to run her finger down the scar on the demoness' cheek.
"Does it bother you?" Raven asked.
"No."
"Do you mind me touching you like this?" she whispered.
"No."
"You don't talk much, do you?"
"No," Tanc said and then smiled.
"That's fine. I can talk enough for both of us."
Tanc laughed. Raven rarely spoke.
"So I've noticed," she teased.
"Do you like me?" Raven asked, boldly, finding the warrior pleasing to look at.
"Of course; otherwise, I would have sold you a long time ago," Tanc replied, deliberately misunderstanding the question.
"No, I mean do you like me? Do you like women?"
"Yes. I like women. Why do you ask?"
Raven sighed.
"Do you want me... like a man would want me?"
Tanc examined the woman's face. A relationship would complicate her life, but she wasn't immune to desire. It was the one emotion demons understood well.
"Yes."
"Then why haven't you taken me before now? Any other brave would have."
"I don't take women against their will."
"And if they want you to take them? Have you slept with other women in this village?"
"No."
Raven sat up and slowly pulled her deerskin shirt off.
"Then take me," she whispered, her voice husky with desire. Tanc gently pushed her down onto the furs and moved over her, pinning her arms above her head with one hand. The other she moved over the young woman's body, enjoying the feel of soft skin.
Stroking the breasts with her fingertips, she marveled at how the nipples pebbled when aroused. Already, she could smell the musky odor of Raven's arousal. Inhaling deeply, she could feel the heat building inside of her own body. Realizing the human body could never tolerate the full impact of her passion, she cooled the fires raging inside of her.
As her free hand roamed slowly up and down Raven's body, she leaned down and stroked the woman's stomach with her tongue. Raven arched her back, trying to pull her own hands free so she could touch her warrior. Tanc increased her grip slightly.
"No," she ordered and then smiled.
Taking a nipple between her teeth, she pulled lightly, making sure not to cause pain. When Raven gasped, she released it and repeated the process on the other. Tanc enjoyed foreplay, especially drawing it out as long as possible. By the time she had finished teasing Raven with her tongue and fingers, the woman was writhing uncontrollably.
"Roll over," she ordered. Raven instantly obeyed. Running her palms over the woman's bare butt, she leaned down. "You are my woman now, not just in name."
Raven nodded.
Running her fingers between the squaw's thighs, she teased the coarse hairs and then nudged the lips apart and inserted two in the slick opening. Moving her hand in and out, slowly at first, she picked up the rhythm.
Her face buried in the furs, Raven tried desperately to push upward, wanting to match her warrior's movements. She had been with men before but never had felt so hot. Even her body juices felt unusually warm.
Tanc made sure she cooled the tender skin as her lover's fluids boiled and vaporized. Humans were incapable of withstanding the full force of a demon's passions. Tanc could inflame them to heights unimaginable and did.
Orgasm followed orgasm until Raven was so exhausted she thought she'd die. Finally taking pity on her, Tanc ceased her lovemaking and began gently massaging Raven's spent muscles. Once she had relaxed, they fell asleep.
* * *
Tanc was aware of Little Deer entering the tent but was too comfortable to wake up. Finding his friend sleeping soundly, Little Deer decided that he and the other braves could do without her this one time. There was plenty of game near the village. They would bring her some of the best cuts of meat, just as she had done for them in the past.
For seven years, they lived together. Raven was happy, knowing she was loved by one of the Lakota's best warriors, while Tanc was contented letting her believe it. Both knew it couldn't last forever. Neither knew it would be so soon.
* * *
The white men were like a plague, encroaching further and further onto the lands that the Lakota had been promised by the Treaty of 1868. It had guaranteed the Indian's sacred grounds would remain unsettled and untouched.
With the discovery of gold, it became clear that the treaty wouldn't last. More and more settlements were established and more clashes occurred between settlers and Indians. Eventually, the Lakota, united with the Cheyenne, left their reservations, traveling deep into the Black Hills. After several council meetings they decided to take back what was rightfully theirs.
The U.S. Calvary, in order to force the natives back onto their reservations, sent several units out to capture the rebellious Sioux. Each time, they were defeated. Finally, fearing a complete uprising, Washington dispatched a large contingency of soldiers to take control of the situation. Lt. Colonel George Custer saw this as a great opportunity to rise higher in the ranks. Being ambitious, he knew it could eventually lead to a run for the presidency.
* * *
Tanc sat quietly, listening to the chiefs and their lieutenants as they discussed future plans. Already the white soldiers were gathered in the foothills, their numbers increasing daily. Several of the tribal elders called for peace talks with the Great White Father. Red Cloud, who had won a victory for his people in the Treaty of 1868 wanted to try one more time for a peaceful settlement. Many of the tribal groups agreed with him.
* * *
"Fighting will gain us nothing but sorrow and tears." Red Cloud said. "We must settle this with words, not by bow and arrow."
"The white man's words are false. You know this better than any here, Red Cloud. Have they not broken the other treaties, already? Their soldiers n
o longer try to keep the settlers off our land or our sacred soil. Already, they destroy our land looking for gold," Crazy Horse replied. "We must show them our strength."
"There is strength in words. Let us try."
"Bah!" Sitting Bull declared. "They do not understand words. They only understand force. My people will not be led from our lands like children. The Great White Father does not care that our women and children starve because our buffalo are slaughtered. He does not care that his own people have broken the treaties. The settlers take our land for their own and we are expected to accept this. I say no more!
Several braves cheered his words.
The debate went on for several days. Eventually, Red Cloud left with his followers, leaving Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse behind.
* * *
"What do you think?" Brave Eagle asked, chewing on a piece of deer jerky.
Tanc shrugged. She already knew how Crazy Horse felt. Minnikajau had talked to her many times about his father's thoughts.
"I'm just a warrior," she said. "I don't question my leaders."
Brave Eagle snorted.
"Since when? You are always challenging them."
Tanc grinned. It was true. Had she been just a squaw, they would have traded her a long time ago. As one of their best warriors, they knew better. No one wanted her training other tribes.
"You know what I mean. I leave the big decisions to the chiefs and the war council."
"You're good at evading the question."
"Okay. I think we are going to war and we'll lose."
"You think the white man fights better than us?"
"No, I think they outnumber us. They'll wear us down. Many braves will die. Eventually there will be no one left to fight and then our people will be forced back onto the reservations and forgotten."
"Then why do we bother to fight?"
"Because we have no choice. It's better to fight and be remembered for our bravery, then submit, knowing our children's children will call us weak."
CHAPTER 15
IT WAS THE spring of 1876. Many of the tribes had joined forces and set up camp in the Big Horn Valley. For several moons, they lived peacefully, hoping they would be left alone. When Minikajau learned that some rogue Indians had murdered several settlers, he knew the soldiers would be coming.
Then one morning, several braves charged into the village with news that an army had crossed the Rosebud River.
"Did you see who leads them?" Minikajau asked.
"Yellow Hair."
Nodding, the chieftain sent for Tanc and Brave Eagle.
"Choose your bravest warriors and focus on Yellow Hair. He must be destroyed."
"Wouldn't it be better to capture him?"
Minikajau rejected the idea. Better to destroy the enemy now than take a chance on him returning with more soldiers.
"No, we must send the Great White Father a strong message. We won't be forced from these sacred grounds."
"More will come," Tanc reasoned.
"Then more will die. Now go, and may the spirits watch over you!"
* * *
Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse had planned for this moment. They had deliberately divided their numbers into small groups and ordered them to stay inside the tents during the day, hoping the white man's scouts wouldn't realize how many warriors were gathered. It worked.
When Custer received word of the encampment, he saw a chance to make a name for himself. If he could surprise the Indians, he was sure he could defeat them and break the back of the Sioux Nation. The colonel was known for his over-confidence and arrogance.
On June 25th, leading the 7th Calvary, he came upon an Indian camp. Only the Rosebud River stood between him and his target. Hoping to do a night crossing, he was quickly discouraged by his scouts, who informed him that it would be impossible. Eventually, he conceded and ordered his soldiers to cross at sunrise. They were spotted by several Sioux warriors. Custer knew he had no choice but to attack, although several of his junior officers tried to talk him into retreating so they could wait for the rest of the Army to catch up.
* * *
After receiving word that soldiers were nearing the village, Minikajau organized the braves into several units and sent them to strategic areas in the foothills of the valley. Little did Custer realize that he was greatly outnumbered until he was surrounded by hundreds of warriors, screaming their war cries.
* * *
While waiting for Minikajau's signal, Tanc, Brave Eagle, Little Deer and her braves circled a small group of soldiers that had been separated from the larger Army contingency.
"We will make them use up their bullets and then attack," Tanc said. "Tell the others to ride as swiftly as possible around them. Make them shoot."
Brave Eagle nodded, knowing many braves would die. Little Deer was the first to fall. Eventually, more than twenty of their warriors lay dead or wounded — but her plan worked. An eerie silence followed when both soldiers and braves no longer heard the sound of gunfire. Encouraged by their success, the Indians charged the white men, who huddled behind the dead bodies of their horses and their fellow soldiers. The battle was over and the Sioux survivors proudly displayed their trophies. Knowing that a battle was still going on elsewhere, Tanc ordered her braves away from the carnage and joined the rest of the tribe as they systematically destroyed the 7th Calvary.
* * *
Staring at the Indian encampment, Lt. Col. Custer summoned two of his most trusted scouts to make sure his soldiers outnumbered the villagers. He had learned his lesson well from his Civil War exploits. Back then, he had been more interested in victory than casualties. In the end it cost him his commission as General and he was demoted to Captain. The blow to his ego left him embittered and smarter, but no wiser. Now, he only took on battles he was assured of winning.
"How many warriors are there?" he demanded.
"Maybe a hundred. No more," Curly, his Crow scout replied. He had located the village two weeks before and watched them for the better part of a day.
"Good. We should be able to take them out without too much loss. I want the village burned afterward. These savages need to learn who is in control."
Confident that a hundred Sioux was not a match for the one thousand, well-armed soldiers under his command, Custer decided it was a waste to send out more scouts to confirm what he had just been told.
Dividing his men into three battalions, he ordered two to circle around the village so they could attack from different directions.
"We'll show them what a real army is," he threatened.
Custer waited a few hours and grew impatient. Unwilling to wait for the two battalions to get in place, he charged the village with his own group. Four thousand Indians poured from the tents. Less than six hours later, Custer and over two hundred soldiers had been killed.
* * *
Tanc watched the soldiers racing toward the village and shook her head.
"They have no respect for their ponies."
Little did she know how prophetic her words actually were. When Custer saw hundreds of braves pouring from the tents, he tried to halt the attack. Unfortunately, he was well beyond the point of no return and found himself surrounded. Ordering his bugler to sound retreat and then re-rally the troops, he summoned his senior officers for their final orders.
"Tell the men to close ranks, dismount and form a tight circle."
"Yes sir. What about the horses, sir?"
"Kill them!"
"Sir?" asked his second in command, sure he had misunderstood.
"I said kill them. We'll use their bodies as shields."
"But Colonel, sir, how will we get home?"
"The Indians have horses, Captain. Once we teach them a lesson, we'll take what we need."
"Begging your pardon, Colonel, but..."
"You have your orders, Captain. This isn't up for discussion."
Saluting, the officers departed, racing to relay their commander's orders. Reluctantly, the soldier
s did as they were told. The most experienced knew it was a mistake but prayed they were wrong.
* * *
When Tanc saw the enemy circling and then dismount, she shook her head. Some might have escaped if they had run for the river. It was the slaughtering of the horses that convinced her that these white men were crazy. Indian and horse shared a special bond. Killing them to use them as shields was unthinkable, not to mention totally illogical.
Warrior Demoness - TI6 Page 10
