She nodded.
“What is your name?”
“Lalaria.”
“Thank you, Lalaria.”
She nodded again and left.
◆◆◆
I was left alone the remainder of the day. Lalaria brought my dinner, but I avoided speaking with her, not wanting to draw attention.
It was late, and I was preparing to go to sleep, when I heard voices outside the door. I recognized Yisaraq’s. She was discussing something with the linyang. I was too far away to understand them, but there seemed to be some disagreement. Then silence. Then the door opened, and she came in, shutting it behind her.
She took a few steps into the room. Her face looked conflicted.
“Yes?” I asked.
“Why did you ask to mate with me?”
“I told you.”
“Simply because I am dwenda? There are others.”
“I find you attractive. You’re beautiful.”
“Who was this dwenda you mated with?”
“The first female I claimed.”
She clearly hadn’t been expecting that answer.
“You have taken wives already?”
“Yes.”
“All dwenda?” she asked.
“No.”
She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
“I have not mated in many talons.”
“How many times have you mated?”
She tilted her head back, looking down on me with some pride.
“Three times aJia’jara chose me to mate with.”
“And yet nothing came of it.”
“He does not blame me for this.”
“I’ve mated more times than that with my dwenda female in less than a sampar.”
Her eyes widened.
“Truly?”
“Truly.”
Yisaraq was wearing a simple white wrap. She reached down to her waist and untied it, letting it fall off.
She was older than Ayarala, and it showed, but she was still fit and well put together. Her breasts were small but still firm. I’d have placed her at about thirty-five for a human woman.
“I will mate with you, if it means so much,” she said. “I will do this for aJia’jara.”
“I thought he said no.”
She stood there, breathing hard.
“This isn’t really about aJia’jara, is it?” I asked. “This is the first time a male has shown any interest in you as a female in ten talons or more, isn’t it?”
“Do you not wish to mate, after everything you said?”
“It’s not that. I’d be happy to mate with you. But not yet.”
“When?”
“After I’ve claimed you. Not while you’re someone else’s wife.”
Her face flared with indignation.
“After I offer myself to you . . .”
“When the time is right.”
She glared at me for another moment or two, then quickly pulled on her wrap and left.
Chapter 17
Later the next day, another one of aJia’jara’s wives came to my room to inform me that the clan leaders had arrived and my presence was required at the meeting. The linyang guards followed us, this time only to the first floor of the building. His wife led me to a large room near the front door. In the hallway outside were several armed guards, one for each clan: linyang, dwenda, sorai, talalong, and even cunelo.
The cunelo guard was leaner than the other rabbit-people I’d seen, with an air of intensity I hadn’t encountered before. She carried a long, curved crystal blade, and I sensed she knew how to use it. Eladra’s timidity was nowhere to be seen.
Murmuring amongst the guards greeted my appearance, and all of them stared in wonder. I favored them with a glance and a smile, and followed aJia’jara’s wife into the room.
Five older females sat around a long table with aJia’jara at the end. The clan leaders were less obvious about it, but I could sense the same amazement in them – at least, all of them except the linyang. I had a good idea why. It was clear aJia’jara’s relationship with the cat-people was different from the others.
aJia’jara’s wife withdrew, closing the door and leaving me alone with them.
“The makalang,” aJia’jara said simply. “Whatever doubts you may have harbored, see for yourselves.”
I was, of course, still naked. I watched their gazes roaming over my body.
“Hello, ladies,” I said.
The tagalong leader, a wrinkled female with faded sapphire hair, was one of the two nearest me. She stood and took a step forward, then reached out and ran a hand up my arm.
She turned to the others.
“Do the rest of you know what this means?”
“Children,” the linyang leader said.
“Perhaps many,” the sorai said.
“Only to the extent that all of us come to an agreement,” aJia’jara said. “You know as well as I that conflict over the makalang will likely result in the effective destruction of one or more clans. I would avoid this.”
“We will all have equal access?” the cunelo leader asked.
“That’s the idea,” I said.
“He will remain with me, as a neutral party,” aJia’jara said. “You will send those females you wish to mate with him here. I leave that process up to you.”
“And what of you?” the linyang leader said to me. “I know you did not come here of your own will.”
“aJia’jara and I have come to an agreement.”
“Which is what?”
“I will decide on the timing and order. I will not discriminate amongst you. Send who you will, I will mate with them.”
“You asked to begin with the dwenda,” aJia’jara said.
I had. But my germ of an idea had blossomed into a way out of this.
“I have changed my mind, having met all of you. I will begin with one of each clan. Together.”
Eyes widened around the table.
“Together?” the cunelo leader said. “Five at once?”
“We may as well get started on an equal footing.”
I waited, but there were no more questions.
“So are we all agreed?” aJia’jara asked.
After another moment or two, the leaders murmured their assent.
“Good,” he said. “You may send your first females for mating tomorrow.”
When I returned to my room, I requested my dinner. Lalaria arrived about ten minutes later. As she set things up, I explained what I wanted from her.
“Eladra has been coming each morning for news. I will tell her.”
I had her repeat it back to me, to be sure she got it. She did.
After Lalaria left, I ate and went to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a rough day, and I needed my rest.
◆◆◆
Around lunch the next day, Yisaraq arrived at my room.
“The first five females from the clans have all arrived. You truly wish them all sent down here at once?”
“I do.”
“I do not see how this is possible, but aJia’jara has agreed to it.”
“One day I’ll take you in the same fashion. Only it will be you alone instead of five.”
Her eyes widened in anger, but she said nothing. I didn’t know if it would ever happen, but I was enjoying provoking her over it.
Yisaraq left. About five minutes later, the door opened. The linyang guards were there. Behind them were five young females, one of each clan. One by one, they filed into my room, and the guards shut the door behind them.
The dwenda had silver hair like Yisaraq, but eyes like emeralds. The linyang was lithe like Narilora, but her hair and fur was orange streaked with white. The talalong was taller than Kisarat, but with the same emerald hair. The sorai was the tallest – though she still barely came up to my chin – with hair like strands of ruby and a long, bushy, orange tail. The cunelo was a bit slimmer than Eladra, but resembled her in features – the same blue eyes but lighter hair, like carame
l.
All of them were stunning. The leaders had clearly started with their A-list. They regarded me with a mix of fear, awe, and arousal, and stared openly at my penis.
“My name is Will, of Hawthorne. I have mated, and I have two offspring.”
They glanced at each other, then responded.
“I am Fayela, of the dwenda. I have not mated.”
“I am Sho-pat of the linyang,” the cat-girl said. “I have not mated.”
“I am Therani, of the talalong,” the snake-girl said. “I have not mated.”
“I am Merindra of the sorai,” the fox-girl said. “I have not mated.”
“I am Lorelat of the cunelo,” the rabbit-girl said. “I have not mated.”
“This will not be what you are expecting,” I said when the introductions were over.
“What do you mean?” Merindra asked.
“I mean, this will be much less unpleasant than you may think. But you must do what I say.”
They all nodded. I directed them to undress and lie together on the bed. They did so quickly. While the prospect of having five smoking hot girls at once was certainly attractive, I had an overarching goal here – and I had to stay focused on it.
For about ten minutes, I used fingers, hands, and tongue to get them all wound up together. They were confused, but did what I told them to. I took Fayela first, remembering the first time with Ayarala. When I broke her membrane and moved into her, she gasped aloud, groping at Sho-pat next to her. I drove her quickly toward her release. She was so full of anticipation and excitement that it took no more than a minute or two. She thrashed under me as the others watched in wonder. I felt the energy of her orgasm, drawing it into me. But I needed more, much more.
I moved to Sho-pat, flipping her over and pulling her hips to me. Her tail thrashed. She let out a yowl as I penetrated her. She too came within minutes.
Therani was ready for me when I turned to her. I stretched her legs apart, hearing her hissing as I moved into her. Her tail came up, winding around my balls. She felt more elastic just as Kisarat did, and I began pounding her roughly. She bit at my shoulder when she came, leaving pinpricks of blood behind.
Merindra was on all fours already when I withdrew from Therani. I grabbed her fluffy tail and lifted it high. She was very wet, and growled softly as I broke into her. I felt a wave of emotion flowing out of her – she seemed the least afraid of the five of them, wanting it the most.
Before she came, I took her ankle and rolled her over on her back without withdrawing. I fell forward onto her chest, looking into her eyes. They were reddish-brown with vertical pupils.
She was the fourth I’d had, and I had yet to come myself. But as Merindra writhed under me, clawing at my back and moaning for me to fill her up, I lost control. With a few more thrusts, I finished her off, feeling her orgasm raging through me just as I exploded deep inside her.
I had to avoid doing that again. The energy of their orgasms now filled me like a roaring fire in my chest, but I gave some of it back to them when I came myself. No more.
I took Lorelat on her back, watching her big breasts bouncing around and her ears twitching in release as she came.
Then I went back to Fayela. She was startled, unprepared, but didn’t stop me when I entered her again. In a minute she was begging me not to stop.
I took all five of them a second time, not letting myself lose control. My heart felt like it was going nova. But I still needed more.
The third time caused them to begin passing out. When I was done, only Merindra remained conscious, gasping, “Makalang” over and over.
It was time. I felt like I could fight Godzilla.
I went to the door and pounded on it.
“Narilora!”
A voice came from the other side.
“I am here!”
The message I’d passed through Lalaria asked Narilora to infiltrate the guards, using the gear we’d taken. I hadn’t been completely sure she could pull it off, but she had.
The door opened. On the other side, I saw Narilora and three startled linyang struggling to get their crossbows up. One got a shot off, hitting me right in the chest.
It felt like a puff of breeze. The kiralabar affected me not at all. I charged forward, grabbing the one who shot me, picking her up, and hurling her bodily down the hallway. The throw was too hard and too fast for her natural agility to compensate. She tumbled end-over-end before slamming into one of her sisters as the other darted out of the way.
I was there before they could react. Everything around me seemed to move in slow motion. I punched the last linyang in the chest, sending her flying backwards into the wall behind her. She fell, unconscious.
One was left, struggling to get to her feet. I kicked out, connecting with the side of her head, and she went down, out before she hit the floor.
I turned to Narilora, who was regarding me with wide eyes and more than a little fear.
“Will?”
“Let’s go.”
I charged up the stairwell.
“Where is aJia’jara?”
“Third floor. There is a sitting room he favors, or so I was told.”
“You’re sure?”
“I think so. He was there an hour ago.”
I charged up the center stairwell, taking four steps at a time. In ten seconds, I burst onto the landing at the third floor. There were two linyang guards with short spears standing there. I snatched the spears from their grasp and smashed the crystal blades to bits against the stairs – there was only one person I wanted to kill here, and it wasn’t another linyang.
As the guards began to react to my presence, I took the spear shafts in my hands like bastons, the short sticks used in Escrima, Filipino martial arts. With a spinning movement, I struck left, then right, cracking both of them across their temples. They fell to the floor.
“Tsulygoi, this way!” Narilora shouted as she ran down one hallway.
I followed her. More guards were coming. She drew her sword and engaged one as I waded into a group of three armed with staves. I spun, kicking out behind me, connecting with one guard and sending her flying backwards. The two others struck with their staves, but I blocked them easily, slipping around one to whack her across the forehead. She went down as the other came around with another strike. But in her overhand strike, she’d left herself open, and I sent her tumbling backwards with a roundhouse kick to her chin.
Narilora was still fighting one guard. But then I saw aJia’jara emerging from a door not ten feet away.
“What –”
He saw me and pulled backwards, shutting the door.
I charged forward, throwing a flying kick at the door. It exploded inwards, where I found aJia’jara struggling with a cabinet of weapons. He came up with a long crystal sword not unlike my katana.
“I am not untrained. I have a blade, and you have a pair of sticks.”
“These sticks have gotten me this far.”
We circled each other for a few moments, both completely naked. The energy from the mating was still raging through me.
“I understand that you find your situation objectionable,” he said. “I assure you that the situation of this world is far more so. Think of something besides yourself. We need you.”
“I’m not unsympathetic. I am simply objecting to being used like a stud horse with no say in the matter.”
“I thought we came to an agreement.”
“I’m changing it.”
He struck at me, but I deflected the blade easily. He was trained, but not to my level or even that of his linyang guards.
But I had to be very careful. His blade looked like Narilora’s, an incomprehensibly sharp work of art. And it was a lot bigger.
He swung at me again, and again I deflected him, but this time his blade caught on one of the sticks, chopping off the end and leaving a sharp point behind.
“You don’t want to kill me,” I said. “You need me.”
“That is
true. But you want to kill me. And frankly, I find continued existence in a dying world preferable to my immediate death.”
I lunged at him, spinning with one stick out to block his blade while slipping the other behind it. I connected with his face, but he stumbled backwards, out of reach, falling against the wall next the door.
At that moment, Narilora burst through the doorway.
“Tsulygoi –”
But she’d missed aJia’jara to her side. He lunged forward, grabbing her and putting his blade to her neck. He laughed loudly.
“So this is one of yours, no? I knew I should have had them collected.”
Narilora gasped, reaching for him, but he pressed the blade tighter. I saw a line of red blossom on her skin.
“Throw down your weapons. I am renegotiating this agreement. From now on, you will be chained in a cell at all times. You will do what I say, or I will carve this one into tiny pieces.”
“Will, I’m sorry,” Narilora whimpered. “I’m so sorry.”
“Not as sorry as he will be,” ajia’Jara said. Drop those sticks.”
“Will . . . ” Narilora gasped. “Remember what I told you. The first time we mated. Remember.”
I did.
I will die for you. I love you, and I will die for you.
I stared into her big green eyes. There was no way I was letting her die.
I focused for a moment, trying to draw all the energy still pounding through me into a single movement. I took a deep breath.
Then I threw the remains of the spear aJia’jara had cut with his blade, the one now ending in a wicked point, directly at his head.
It was too fast for him to dodge. The spear went through his left eye and out the back of his skull.
But at the same time, Narilora let out an anguished screech, falling with him and clutching at her throat.
I leapt toward her. In his last movement, aJia’jara had managed to draw the blade across her neck. Crimson blood was now pouring out.
She choked, convulsing under me.
“Will . . .”
I put my hands on the incision. It was far too deep to stop the blood with mere pressure.
She was dying. I could feel her life ebbing away.
Narilora shook against me. “I lo . . . .” She choked again, drowning on her own blood. And she went limp in my arms.
The Scarlet Cavern Page 16
