by Alexis Ward
Dumont’s Harem Castle Adventure
By Alexis Ward
Copyright 2019 by Alexis Ward
All rights reserved.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
This book contains sexually explicit material, scenes, and adult language. All characters in this work are 18 years of age or older.
Chapter 1 - A Strange New World
Chapter 2 - Sasha’s Place
Chapter 3 - The Destroyed Caravan
Chapter 4 - Prepping for the Trip to Town
Chapter 5 - Trouble on the Way to Town
Chapter 6 - Welcome to Doubel
Chapter 7 - Wealth and Taxes
Chapter 8 - Beneath the Ruins of Castle Trevarthan
Chapter 9 - Making a Deal with the Goblin Queen
Chapter 10 - Goblin Queen Celia joins the Party
Chapter 11 - Split the Party
Chapter 12 - Rightful Claims
Chapter 13 - New Developments at Castle Trevarthan
Chapter 14 - Blood in the Night
Chapter 15 - Revelations And Vendettas
Chapter 16 - That Which Lurks Beneath
Chapter 17 - To Rescue a Princess
Chapter 18 - The Time Before Dawn
Chapter 19 - The Journey Begins
Chapter 20 - Sometimes it Ends with a Whisper
Chapter 21 - Epilogue
Back of the Book Matters and Thank You
Chapter 1 - A Strange New World
Artillery shells rained down and detonated all around my squad and I. I was a soldier, that was what I told myself. But truthfully, I just felt afraid. Which wasn’t good, not with the six remaining men looking to me for direction, and to be the strong one who showed no fear. It was dark, all we had for fortification were some shallow foxholes covered with brush. I risked poking my head up to see if I could spot the advancing line of Germans in the dark. All I saw was snow, trees, and the bumps of my men’s helmets that poked occasionally over their cover, as we all tried to remain aware of our surroundings.
I heard one of the men yelling at me from some distance away. “Lieutenant! I’ve lost radio contact with--” I lost focus on what he was saying as another burst of artillery fire exploded around us. A shell landed directly in front of my face. I saw it as though it were happening in slow motion. My hands tightened around my rifle, and then there was a burst of heat and light as the shell inches from my nose detonated, and the world around me faded away.
I regained consciousness sometime later. The sun was just peaking over the horizon. I heard no guns, no yelling, no artillery shells raining down around me. I sat up. There was still snow on the ground, but my men were nowhere to be seen. My rifle was still in my hands and my backpack was still next to me in my shallow foxhole. I stood up slowly and scanned the forest for signs of motion, anything to indicate friendlies or the enemy.
It seemed clear, for now, so I checked each of my squadmates areas in turn. They were all missing. Wait, hadn’t an artillery shell exploded in my face? In which case, where was the crater, and how was I alive? Or was this the afterlife? My musing was interrupted by an animal growl, which sounded far too close to me for comfort.
I whirled and came face to face with a wolf that was larger than and I’d seen before. Even on four legs, the beast was taller than me. His nose was about two feet away from mine. I had no idea how he’d crept up on my so silently. No sudden moves. I moved my rifle slowly to my shoulder as the beast growled at me, it’s fangs bared, drool dripping and melting tiny holes into the snow. The giant wolf sprang into the air and I squeezed the trigger.
Then the beast was on top of me. I felt it’s blood soak into my coat and shirt, so my bullet must have at least hit it. But as it snapped it’s maw at me and tried to pin me with it’s paws, it was all I could do to fend off it’s fangs with my rifle held in both hands. Suddenly I heard a wet smack and the crunch of bones breaking and the beast fell limp atop me, pinning me to the ground. I heard footsteps crunching on snow nearby.
“You alive under there?” a female voice asked. I couldn’t quite see her, most of my vision being full of the creature atop me.
“I’m alive. Uninjured, I think.” I wheezed. A muscular girl in matching deerskin pants and long shirt with sleeves that only came down to her elbows stepped into my field of view. She held an oversized spear in one hand, the dull metal blade soaked in blood. Her short blonde hair stuck out slightly from under her big furry hat. She laid her spear down and shoved her shoulder into the carcass of the beast. Her booted feet dug into the dirt beneath the snow as she shoved the bulk of the creature off of me till I was able to wiggle free.
I stood and picked up my rifle from where it had fallen. I felt bruised all across my chest, but otherwise okay. I looked over as the woman pulled her spear free of the ground. Her gaze was fixed on my rifle. “Thanks for your help. That’s the biggest wolf I’ve ever seen. You… probably shouldn’t be this close to the front though. The Germans are going to be coming over that ridge any day now.” I said to her.
She looked me up and down. “Did… your head hit the ground very hard? No one lives within three days from here other than me. And that’s a very strange spear you have.” she said as her eyes wandered up and down my body.
“I… I need to find my squad. And you need to go.” I felt dizzy. Maybe I had caught some shrapnel to my head. Where was my helmet? I reached up and ran my hand through my hair. Why was my hair so long? I thought I’d had it shaved just a few days ago. Then it felt like the world tilted beneath my feet. In my last moment of clarity, I flicked the safety of my rifle on, then lost my balance and blacked out.
Chapter 2 - Sasha’s Place
I awoke to the smell of woodsmoke and the weight of a heavy blanket atop me. I looked around and found that I was alone in a small log cabin, perhaps ten feet by fifteen feet. The smell emanated from the fire roaring in the fireplace built out of stone set into one wall. There were no windows, just a closed wooden door. The walls were hung with animal skins, and a long rack held a variety of spears, knives, and arrows. The floor was covered in layers of animal pelts, but patches of dirt showed through the gaps.
I sat up and realized that I was naked as the blanket dropped and cold air rushed over my skin. My clothes were clean and folded neatly on a wooden trunk at the foot of the bed. I got dressed and then wandered over to sit on the furs nearest to the warmth of the fire. Just as I knelt down the door opened and a gust of cold air rushed into the room. I turned just in time to see the girl from my dream slam the door shut. “I must still be dreaming.” I said. She was dressed just as she was when I first saw her, except that she had a light dusting of snow atop her shoulders and her hat, and she carried an object bundled in paper instead of her spear.
She looked at the bed, then to me, then back. “I thought you were never going to wake up! It’s been days since I carried you here, foreigner. You seemed to be in a coma.” she said as she stepped closer, her blue eyes fixed on me with a strange yet pleasant intensity.
“Have I? I.. But. I was on the battlefield. And then everyone was gone. I think I was hit by an artillery shell.” I said as she sat down next to me and unwrapped the paper bundle. Inside was a pile of beef jerky and fresh vegetables. It smelled heavenly and I could feel my mouth watering as more immediate needs than the gaps in my memory took over.
She placed the bundle between us. “You should eat, if you can. I doubt you were struck by a cannon. Men do not survive such things. You still s
eem confused. Try not to panic, your memory will come to you in time, perhaps? Do you remember your name? I am called Sasha.” she said.
“Ah. Clive. Clive Dumont. Clinton’s my actual name, but everyone called me Clive.” I said, then I tore into the food she’d set in front of me.
“Well. I’m not sure about your memories of this battle you were in, but I live on the edge of the Adriette Forest. To the south is a broad open land that eventually reaches the sea. The nearest villages and towns are in that direction. I’m a hunter, as my parents were before me. This is where you are now. You’re welcome to stay with me, but once you’re well I expect you’ll help me out. I uh… did look through your things. You don’t seem to have any money. If you want to leave, I’m going to make a run to trade furs in about a week. Help me out till then, and I’ll cut you in on the profits. You can go look for your squad or your commander or whatever once you’ve got some coin to pay your way. How does that sound?” Sasha asked as she nibbled on a vegetable.
I nodded. “Not… bad I guess. What do you hunt?” I asked.
Sasha chuckled. “Everything. The bigger the better. Large exotic animals have the most meat and fur, thus they’re the least effort in the long run. An equal weight of little common animal pelts is worse far less at market. Any other questions?” she asked.
I finished chewing a piece of jerky and swallowed it. “Where’s the rest of my stuff?” I asked.
“Your gear and your strange spear-tube are in the trunk at the foot of the bed. I am curious to know how it works. Does it shoot arrows tiny harpoons?” Sasha asked as she glanced toward the trunk.
She doesn’t know what a gun is? Have I gone back in time or something, or to a land where firearms don’t exist? I shrugged. “It… uh, it’ll probably be easier to show you. I think I’m up to a demonstration, if you have time?” I said.
Sasha looked at me curiously, then got up and dug something out from under the bed. It was a long deerskin shirt, with the fur on the inside, much like the one she wore, but bulkier and open down the middle. It had a row of holes down one side and little bone fasteners on the opposite side, each looked like a tiny animal horn or tooth. “If you think you have the strength. But it’s cold outside. We’re in the middle of winter. Wear this over your clothes. It was my father’s, treat it well, okay?” Sasha said.
I stood and put it on. Inside the cabin, I almost felt too warm wearing it. “Okay.” I said as I opened the trunk and dug through my meagre belongings till I found the rifle. The safety was still on, and if it hadn’t been used it should have four shots left out of it’s clip of five. “We will need something to use as a target. A large piece of bark or a stick or something.” I said.
Sasha nodded and held open the door to the cabin for me to step out. I could feel the pressure from the wind, but the thick hide coat blocked out almost all the sensation of cold. Once outside she picked up a chunk of firewood and then looked at me. “Where should we this up then?” she asked.
I looked around. We were in a large clearing surrounded by thick trees. We stood on the porch of the cabin, directly across from us was another cabin, two stories tall and about thirty feet wide, adjacent to it was a small shed. I pointed away from the houses. “Set it in the snow about fifty paces that way, at the edge of the clearing.” I said. Then I leaned against the wall of the cabin as Sasha tramped out into the snow, stuck the stick into the ground at the indicated distance, and then came back. It was snowing, even now, but gently. As she returned I reached out and brushed the snow off the top of her hat and shoulders.
She looked at me silently, but said nothing. I couldn’t tell if she was blushing because of the contact, or because she was cold. “Anyway. So… you have no idea how this works?” I hefted the rifle in both hands.
She shook her head. “No. I’ve never seen it’s like before.” she said.
“Okay. Very simply, this button” I pointed to the safety switch “in this position, it can’t fire, but when I flick it this way, it’s able to shoot. At no point should you ever point the barrel at anyone you don’t want to kill.”
I slid the magazine free of the housing. “This weapon takes ammunition. These little brass colored guys are bullets. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get more anytime soon, so we’re just going to fire a couple shots for now.” I slid the magazine back into place, then slid the bolt down to chamber a round. “That lever I just pulled puts a bullet into the chamber, which means we’re now ready to fire.”
I sat down and took a shooter’s crouch, resting my elbow on my upraised knee for stability and then sighed on the piece of wood in the snow. I exhaled slowly and willed my body to be perfectly still, then I squeezed slowly on the trigger till the rifle fired. Sasha flinched at the noise the rifle made as the stick twisted and fell flat atop the snow in the distance. For the moment, I ignored her and sighted again, aiming at the wood piece again. A second shot caused it to split into two chunks. Then I thumbed the safety to the on position, stood up and looked at Sasha. “Well? What do you think?” I asked.
“A curious, terrifying and accurate weapon. Though I presume it took you lots of training. Each one of those shots requires one of the tiny cartridges… bullets, you showed me earlier? How many of those do you have total?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Perhaps thirty or forty. Again, the main issue is I have no idea if anyone in your land can make them. I have the knowledge to reload the ones I’ve shot, but it requires specialized tools.” I said as I bent over and picked up the two brass shells, still slightly warm to the touch and put them in my pants pocket.
Sasha nodded. “Indeed. Perhaps I should teach you other methods of hunting, as it wouldn’t do to use up all of your limited supplies right away. Have you ever used a bow?” she asked.
Four hours later I could say I honestly had used a bow, though I wasn’t very good at it. Sasha luckily proved to be an infinitely patient teacher. We practiced until the sun was low against the tree line, then retired to the smaller cabin. “You’ll sleep here Clive. It was my room when I was younger, before my parents passed on. Their house is mine now. I’ll be back with some food in a minute. Get warmed up, you did well today.” Sasha said.
I nodded, my arms felt weak, like they were made of jello that had been beaten with a large heavy hammer. Archery used muscles in an entirely different way than I was used to. I slipped out of my fur coat, wrapped the blanket from the bed around my shoulders, and coaxed the embers of the fire back into a proper fire by adding some more logs and stirring the coals back to life. That night we dined on wolf steak over steamed rice and vegetables. Sasha did all her cooking over the fireplace in a large pot. Shortly after dinner I fell asleep on the floor atop a pile of furs, with my blanket over me.
I awoke in near darkness, the only light cast by the smouldering coals of the fire, to the sound of the door to my cabin being opened as a shadowy figure slipped inside. I stood rapidly and sprang toward the back wall. I grabbed a short thick knife from one of the shelves and spun to face the intruder. “Clive, it’s Sasha, relax.” she said.
I sighed. “Right. Nobody out here except us.” Sasha still wore her pull-over hide shirt, but I noticed her legs were bare, except for her feet, she still wore her boots.
Sasha took a few steps toward me as I set the knife back down in its place on the shelf. “That’s exactly the problem. The townsfolk are too soft, I can’t relate to them. And since my father died, I’ve lived up here alone. It’s the only life I know, and I like it, but it… it gets lonely.” she said as she stared at a point on the floor between us.
I looked at her, unsure what she was getting at. “Yeah… I kinda get that.” I said.
She took a more steps toward me, till she was practically pressed against me. “So… tonight I want to stay with you. I mean, I know we just met, but it’s okay, isn't it? It’s not like you’re some sailor who just came to port for a day and intend to leave right away for another six months. Do you?” she asked.
; “I mean, unless I can find my way back to… the land I’m from, I’ve got nowhere to go. So… no. I don’t intend that. If you want to be closer, I wouldn’t mind that.” I felt her fingers trace a line along my hip in the dark.
She sighed and pressed her chest against me as she wrapped her arms around my lower back. “Thank you. So… please… hold me. More…” she sighed for a moment, “If you’ll have me. You can do more. It’s uh.. been a long time for me.” she whispered in my ear. I felt my cock hardening as it strained against my pants. I slid my hands down to her waist, her skin creamy, smooth and warm as I explored slowly up her toned body till I found her breasts.
She melted under my touch and pulled herself closer. She gasped as I pinched one of her nipples softly. “I think we should slide out of these clothes and go to bed Sasha?” I whispered as I stepped out of her embrace and unfastened my pants. She slid her shirt over her head and let it fall to the floor, and then slid out of her hat and boots. Then she inched closer to the fireplace as she shivered and wrapped her arms around herself.
Her whole body was slim and hard with muscles honed from a lifetime of hunting, but her small breasts were still soft, with pert little nipples already hard, whether from arousal, the cold air, or both. I dropped my shirt to the ground and we both stood naked for a moment, watching eachother. Then I stepped forward and settled my hands into the natural curve of her hip and waist again, pulled her close and kissed her. For a moment she was still, then she pushed herself against me as she moaned softly.
