Hela would laugh if she knew how afraid her daughter was. The idea made Ama quicken her pace. The house was around the next corner. She took a deep breath, straightened her body, and rounded it.
The street was empty. The alleys were empty. There was nothing to fear. Ama sighed, entered the house, and began emptying the basket. She put the dates in a stone bowl, casually popping one in her mouth before pushing the bowl aside. Reaching in the cupboard, she pulled out another large stone bowl and emptied the rest of the fruit.
Her stomach grumbled as she looked at the halloumi. The cheese was Hela's favorite food. It was also one of Ama's. On the few market days they were able to find it, Hela bought as much as they could afford. But the cheese always disappeared too quickly. Ama sometimes thought Hela ate it while she was asleep just to make sure she got more than her fair share.
Ama finished emptying the baskets. Three stone bowls were filled with fruit and nuts. Two loaves of bread lay next to a closed dish of salted goat. They would eat well this week. She turned and left the kitchen.
As she walked back into the street, the sounds of the market were a distant mumble. The empty streets were eerie and although she knew she had nothing to fear, her skin prickled.
You won't always know when you're in danger, Hela's voice said in her mind, but your body might. Listen to your body, little one.
She cut through the next alley and past more garbage. Somewhere in the city, Hela was doubtless searching for her next meal. Ama hoped she chose to stay the night somewhere else, even if it meant the beast had to go hungry.
The noise of the market was louder now. She could hear the sounds of drums and flutes above the din of hawkers and milling shoppers. With a sigh, she left the alley and headed to the street that poured out onto the market square.
A man was walking toward her. Ama was lost in her own thoughts and nearly ran into him. "Sorry," she mumbled.
"Ama?" a voice asked.
She looked up from her feet and into Yusef's piercing eyes.
"I-- Hello."
The man smiled. "Glad to see you again. I was hoping you would be here."
Ama blushed. The beast stirred within her and Yusef's eyes dulled. She gritted her teeth and held it in check. "It is good to see you too."
"Do you still swim?"
"Every day."
"I would like to learn."
Ama blinked. "You would like to learn to swim?"
His eyes dropped toward her feet. "Yes. If, well, if you're interested--"
She giggled. "I would love to teach you. I want someone to swim with."
Yusef smiled. "Perhaps tomorrow morning?"
She turned and looked at the sky. The sun was low on the western horizon. Soon the night would come as would the coolness of Sin. "What are you doing now?"
"Excuse me?"
"Could we start now?" She loosened her grip on Garaaga's shadow and let the beast gaze through her eyes. Yusef's face went slack. She reached out and took his large calloused hand in hers. "Would you like that?"
"I-- Yes. Please," he slurred.
Ama led him through the crowd and toward the city gates. The beast struggled to come forward, to take and slake its thirst. Every step toward the river was a fight for control. Yusef was silent but his hand occasionally squeezed hers.
The gurgling river was the color of slate in the dying afternoon sun. She dropped his hand, pulled off her shawl and place it in the branches of an olive tree. When she turned around, Yusef was staring at the river with dull glassy eyes. Ama frowned. "Yusef?"
"Hmmm?"
"What's wrong?"
"I don't know."
She was about to tell him to take off his clothes, and then stopped. Is this really what you want? she asked herself. A slave?
"No," she whispered. "It's not." After a brief struggle, she managed to cage the shadow. She pulled her will from Yusef. His eyes cleared at once.
"Oh," he said and shook his head. "Too much beer?" he asked aloud.
Ama giggled. "You told me you wanted to learn how to swim?"
"Yes." He broke his stare with the river. She watched as his eyes swept from her feet to her face. "Yes. I-- I do."
The shadow screamed to be loosed. "I swim naked," Ama said and easily slid from the rest of her clothes. Yusef's tunic bulged at his waist. He brushed a hand beneath his chin and moaned. "First step," she whispered and tugged at the garment's sleeves, "is to get this off."
His cheeks flushed with color. "I--"
"You can swim in your clothes if you like, but it won't be nearly as enjoyable."
The knot at his side dissolved beneath shaking fingers. The tunic billowed without the rope holding it together. She reached forward, took the hem in her hands, and lifted. The dirty gray fabric whispered as it slid across his skin. He bent forward and she pulled the tunic over his head. She turned and draped his tunic on the olive branch next to her shawl.
"Take my hand," she whispered. He gave an embarrassed smile, his left hand hiding his genitals. He placed his other hand in hers and she led him down the soft, dark soil bank and into the water. He resisted as she moved further in. She turned to him. "You have nothing to fear from Mother River. She loves her children."
Yusef was shaking, but she wasn't sure if it was from fear or excitement. She gave him a reassuring smile and twirled her free hand's fingers through the coils of chest hair. "Nothing to fear," she whispered again and kissed his chest. He shuddered.
The beast was screaming to come forward, but she held it back. She led her charge further into the water. The water quickly covered her knees and then her waist. Yusef was taller, but not by much. He moaned as the river licked against his waist.
"Let me teach you," she said. "Lay on your back."
Still shivering, he obeyed her command and tilted backward. She placed her hands beneath his buttocks and lifted. His body floated atop the surface.
"Bed of water," he mumbled.
Ama walked around him and placed her hands on his shoulders, squeezing and massaging. "We float on Mother River," she whispered and bent down to kiss him. Their lips met and she tasted the sour tang of beer mixed with fruity fig. Her tongue touched his.
The beast roared within her, but she paid no attention. She had watched Hela pleasure men for years. Her mother had even gone so far as to invite her daughter into bed, to please the night's lover. Ama had watched, but had never joined in.
The beautiful Yusef lay on his back in Mother River, basking in the dying rays of the sun, his penis fully erect and pointed toward the sky. Ama broke off the kiss and ran a hand down his wet chest. He moaned as her fingers grazed the skin and traveled downwards. When she touched the curls of pubic hair, he moaned louder and shook.
She grasped him and enveloped him inside her fist. Ama leaned in and kissed him again as she gently squeezed his member. His cheeks burned with color and his breathing was rapid. She pulled her face away from his and smiled. His eyes were closed. "Let the river take you," she whispered. "Let me take you."
"Yes," he sighed.
Ama moved her hand up and down. His penis shuddered in her grasp. She felt his body coiling for release with each stroke. A crimson tendril rose from his mouth. She breathed it in and felt the beast moan inside her. His body stiffened as he climaxed and jetted in her fist.
A gout of crimson mist erupted from his mouth and she slipped her lips over his and drank of his pleasure. Her body shivered with it. As he relaxed, the tendrils and mist disappeared. She pulled away and stared at the single white bang floating from his scalp. She touched it.
"Yusef?"
His eyes shuddered open. "Yes, Ama?" he slurred.
She kissed him again. "We have to stop for a moment. Can you float here for me?"
His lips turned into a frown. "The current. It will--"
"Use your hands, Yusef. Paddle with them. You can keep Mother River from carrying you far."
She showed him how and he floated, his hands paddling beneath the wat
er to keep himself in place. "Stay here," she said and kissed him again.
"Yes," he sighed.
Ama walked out of the river and to her shawl. She rummaged until she found her coin bag. She pulled the leather strip through grommet and quickly tied it around a lapis stone. Yusef was still floating near the shore. She walked back down the bank and into the water.
"A gift for you," she whispered and kissed him. She placed the makeshift necklace around his neck and tied it off. The beast bristled as the lapis weakened it.
"You're a gift," he said when she removed her mouth. "Ever since I saw you, I dream of you."
She reached down and touched his softening penis. It twitched as blood flowed back into it. His hands were still paddling in the water as she grabbed them and pulled him forward. His legs sunk into the water until he stood facing her. She touched his face. "Couple with me."
He put his hands beneath her ass and lifted until she straddled him, her arms around his shoulders. As he entered her, the beast howled with victory. Ama cried out as a mix of pleasure and pain wracked her body.
"Are you--"
"Keep loving me," she whispered.
Gently, he lifted and then dropped her in the water. He slowly pushed deeper. Ama bit his shoulder from the pain. He moaned, but continued.
She felt him twitching inside her and she let the beast come forward the slightest bit. Her body writhed with energy. Eyes closed, the darkness began to shift and twirl. An amorphous figure of shadow stared at her with crimson eyes. It seemed to be nodding.
"Father," she whispered. "Mother. Bless me."
Her vision exploded as Yusef climaxed inside her. A galvanic wave of euphoria mixed with pain spread outward from her womb. She shuddered in his arms, her rapid breathing joining his.
He kissed her forehead. "Ama?"
She wiped a tear from her cheek. "Yes?"
"Are you-- Are you okay?"
She opened her eyes and stared into his. Sin was rising over the horizon and she could see its crescent shape reflected in his gaze. Ama leaned forward and kissed him.
By the time they left the river bank, Sin was high in the sky and the lapis stone had turned clear.
15
Ama awoke with a start. "Yusef?"
The man she clutched let out a moan.
No, Hela's voice said in her mind, Yusef is long dead. Just like me.
"Fadil," she whispered. He moaned again. She stroked his hair and told him to sleep. His body twitched once and then fell still. Ama waited until she was certain he slept and then carefully left the pallet.
The lamp guttering in the corner let out just enough light for her to see his face. The bruises and welts were still angry and purple. It would take days before the man was back to his handsome self.
Ama looked down at her shoulder. The claw marks had turned into thin white lines. By tomorrow, they would be gone all together.
But she'll still be out there, Hela whispered in her mind. What do you think she is, little one? Something like you?
"Something like me," Ama whispered aloud. She walked to the door and pulled a shawl from the peg. She shuffled into it, took one last look at Fadil, and then stepped out into the evening air.
In two more nights, the king's Name Day celebration would end in a city-wide feast. But tonight was for more drunken debauchery. The performers were doubtless on stage, entertaining the throngs of revelers, and hoping for shekel rain.
Ama made her way toward the city gates by alleys and side streets. Tahira might be back in her tent. Or perhaps she would be wandering the streets looking for another victim.
Victim. You mean prey, Hela's voice tittered in her mind. You think she's different from you?
Her mother's face floated into her mind--bloody, gashed, a fierce smile on her face, eyes burning with red, and scales of stone covering her body.
All anyone was to you was prey. Even me, she replied to the voice. It didn't respond.
She passed through an adjacent alley and walked toward the street. The city gates would be no more than a few minutes' walk. Ama sighed as a roar of celebration rose from the city square.
A scream pierced the night. Ama stopped and cocked her head. The scream came again. She reached the street and started to run away from the gates. A chorus of hoarse shouts drowned out the cry. She passed three alleys before she met the cross-street and slowed her pace.
A young girl lay in the street. Her arms were severed, one leg was ripped out of its socket and the other half-chewed. A mask of terror was frozen on the child's face. Two men dragged a woman back from the bloody pool surrounding the girl.
"It!" she screamed. "Ušumgallu killed my little girl!" Her finger pointed toward the nearest alley.
Ama growled and ran down the alley. More shouts and cries shattered the night behind her, but she ignored them. If it was Tahira, she'd kill her. Whatever she was, attacking children was beyond the pale--not even her mother would have considered it.
She jumped over a trash pile and stared down at the ground. Droplets of blood stained the litter. In the moonlight, the fluid looked black rather than crimson. Ama slowed her pace and sniffed. Yes, she could smell it now and she was closing in on it.
Tahira had smelled of figs and the female sex. This smelled of rotten meat and offal. Ignoring the ground, she focused on the scent and picked up the pace. Her bare feet crunched through garbage and detritus as she ran from alley to alley.
The assailant was making its way toward the city rear. Ama grinned to herself. Once it reached the final street near the palace, she'd be able to look down the alley and have it covered. She could trap it there and kill it.
Ušumgallu, the grief-stricken mother had said.
Ušumgallu--the dragon, the snake, the poisonous one.
The palace loomed above her. The line of torches on each of its three levels lit the area in a soft, flickering glow. She slowed her pace. The King's guard would no doubt be patrolling. If they saw her running, they might get suspicious and that was one thing she didn't want.
Growing up with Hela, she'd learned the dangers of discovery. Hela was less careful than she should have been, but her mother still did her best to hide in plain sight. If too many of the kingdom's citizens caught sight of her plying her trade, they might choose to attack. Garaaga's shadow was formidable, but it wasn't invulnerable to large groups of armed, angry, frightened humans.
She stopped at the last street and peered around the corner house. Seven guards with their spears pointed to the sky walked a slow perimeter in front of the palace steps. She could still smell the creature, but it was more faint. She wondered if perhaps it had circled back when she saw a shadow in the flickering torch light. The thing had managed to get behind the guard on the far end and cowered beyond the steps.
She concentrated on the shape, and brought Garaaga's shadow forward. Her head tingled as she used its sight. The world shimmered and the colors drained from it. The torch light seemed to melt away and the dark shadow near the steps began to glow. The creature was dressed in a black robe, its eyes red with swirling yellow.
"Ušumgallu," Ama whispered.
The creature's head swung toward her and she ducked back behind the building. Her heart hammered in her chest. The chase had left her feeling weak and run down. If this ended in confrontation, she'd need to feed afterward.
She peered around the corner again. The creature stared back at her. She cursed. The thing was smiling at her with sharp, white canines. It raised a hunk of meat in salute. One of the guards must have heard it move, because he turned and walked towards its position.
The creature's smile widened. As the guard came within a step, the creature slithered forward and then leaped. A clawed hand slit the guard's throat with practiced ease and the man fell to the ground. The sound of his spear and metal adornments crashing into stone made the other guards turn toward the creature. By the time their eyes were focused, it had already bolted down the street.
Ama rose and
ran down the alley. Hoarse shouts from the remaining guards filled the night. When she turned at the street the creature had gone down, someone yelled for her to stop. She didn't bother looking--she knew the guard would be pointing a spear at her.
She saw the creature ahead of her. Its robe was flailing from its speed and she could see its green scaled feet kicking up dirt. Ama leaned forward and increased her pace. The thing looked back at her over its shoulder and let out a cry. She was gaining on it. It couldn't outrun her.
The creature slid right and disappeared into an alley mouth. Ama followed suit, just seconds behind. Its smell led her through several turns. By the time she heard the sounds of drunken revelry and applause, it was too late.
She rounded the last corner and stared into the great crowd of the Name Day celebration. The creature was gone. She could still smell it, but it would be impossible to follow through the tangle of arms and torsos. Cursing, she backtracked and ran east. It was no doubt heading for the gates.
When she reached the first major street that didn't lead into the crowd, she turned, brought the beast forward the slightest bit and pushed herself. Rage swirled in her belly and melted across her body. A cloud of dust followed her as her feet sped across the street.
The torches at the city gates changed the world from twilight into a guttering glow. She swallowed the beast's power and slowed her pace. Her eyes darted west and bore into the crowd. Men and women danced and drank. A group of jugglers was on the stage, sticks and rocks circling the air above them. The creature, however, was not among them.
Ama turned toward the gates. Two guards were staring at her. She smiled and walked toward them.
"Good evening," she curtsied.
Their expressions melted from suspicion into desire.
"Do something for you?"
She smiled. "I wonder if you saw a man wearing a dark robe come past?"
Daemons of Garaaga (Children of Garaaga) Page 14
