Date: Wed, 13 Nov 2013 18:26:53 +0000
From: Michael Offutt <kavrik@hotmail.com>
Subject: Black Dragon Rising Chapter 23 - Gay Science Fiction

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                                    *****

                            Chapter Twenty-Three

      Morning breaks early in the mountains, and I wake to a slippery wet
sensation sliding up and down on my rock hard erection. I blink in the
semi-darkness and see Talen busy at work, licking my glans with the tip of
his tongue and digging in and around the white foreskin. Occasionally he
stops to pinch it delicately with his fingers and to squeeze the tight skin
down over the head like a turtleneck sweater. Then with his fist snug he
pushes it back again, massaging my firmness with a hand so wet it
gleams. White foam and an occasional thick drop of snow white semen emerges
from the urethra, and he teases it to the tip of his tongue. It's the slow
beginning of a milking that lasts a half hour, as my semen and the thick
royal jelly ooze continuously from within to feed his starving belly. All I
can do is make fists with my fingers and toes, body tense, and enjoy what
he's doing for me.

      I watch in fascination as my best friend deep throats my meat,
shoving it into his mouth that really is too small for such a load. He
stares at me with his eyes, indicating with many cute looks that this is
work for him, and that he sacrifices of himself because he loves me.

      Following a particularly intense spasm, I reach down and comb my
fingers through his mousy brown hair. It's so soft. And I struggle to stay
quiet while the sound of men sleeping nearby intermingles with the wood.

      Not everyone's asleep, however. At a tree near us, Talisac watches
with drool forming at the corner of his mouth. Talen and I are lying in
ankle high grass, sheltered by spruce and aspen trees, and the bulk of his
bobbing head is obscured from camp by a fallen tree trunk.

      Want a show, Talisac? I think to myself. Want to see the rewards one
reaps when I choose them as a lover?

      I spread my long muscular legs, noting I fell asleep last night in my
armor. It's commonplace really and is how all warriors must rest. Like a
good cocksucker, Talen moves between my thighs with skill, positioning his
body betwixt my splayed boots that are now soaked through with my sex
sweat. He flicks my sopping wet balls; runs his hand through the barely
visible hair lying there like fallen wheat around the base of a dick that
rises like a tree trunk into his interlaced fingers.

      "That's it," I say, forcing his head lower on it. He makes a gagging
sound but I don't let up.  "Fucking suck it you cum pig," I whisper, and
then I thrust with my hip; he almost chokes. I'm not being mean; I'm just
telling the truth. Talen can't live without my cum so I treat him like the
whore he is.

      I press my beautiful slut to the side forcing his head to lie
parallel to the ground. Then I fuck his lips and it delights me to see him
struggle to keep his teeth covered. I finally get all twelve inches into
his mouth, down his throat, and slap my laden balls against his
chin. "You're my bitch," I say, but I do so lovingly. "Suck harder and
don't spill a fucking drop." I feel my nuts tighten and hot spunk coats his
esophagus. He claws at my breastplate. I back out some so he can breathe,
but a bit of white does dribble from his nose like a huge booger.

      I pull out and he gasps for breath. "Kian..." he tries to say
something but I cut him off with a kiss. The taste of salty cum in my own
mouth is wonderful, even though it's my own. Then I turn him around ready
to rape his tight pussy with my dripping prick.

      That's when he backs away from me.

      "What's gotten into you?" he asks, voice still low. He stands up and
wipes his hands on his cloak. I stand up too, and my huge erection hangs in
front of me dangling between my legs like those giant sausages that hang
from the rafters of a butcher shop.

      "I'm not through," I say. "On your fucking knees."

      Talen walks off into the woods. I race after him, huge dick bobbing
up and down, and grab him by the wrist about twelve feet south of the tree
where Talisac is bound. I twist his arm and force him to the mud over a
stump. He squeals a little but finally stops. "You know you want this," I
tell him.

      Talen nods meekly.

      I press my sopping wet dick head against his the fecal slit at the
back of his killsuit and push myself between those boy cheeks. Getting it
past his extraordinarily tight sphincter takes some thrust. Talen tries to
scramble away from the pain but he can't because of the stump. He lets out
a howl so I clamp my hand over his mouth and then pop it in. The slippery
nature of my royal jelly that now coats the outside of my dick skin makes
invading him easy. In and out I go, pushing harder and harder until his
asshole dribbles with stuff I've left in his guts.

      I breed him with both hands pressed into the middle of his back, the
full weight of my body focused in every contraction of my buttocks. By the
time I finish, I collapse in a wave of exhaustion onto his spine. I pull
out, turn him around, and say, "Lick it clean." He does, and then I kiss
him gently. "I love you," I say at last. I wish I had a fucking pipe to
smoke.

      "Why were you so rough?" he asks.

      "Did you like it?"

      He nods.

      "That's why, then," I say to him. "I knew you'd love it." I get up
and head back to where I fell asleep the night before. My codpiece has to
be here somewhere. I stop at the tree so that Talisac can get a good look
at what makes me a man. I squeeze my balls in front of him, he licks his
lips.

      "You're never getting a taste," I say to him. "But if you want, I'll
let you sniff my codpiece.  It's about all a dog like you deserves."

      "If you want my help," Talisac says, "then you'll have to keep your
end of the bargain."

      "I haven't killed you yet," I tell him. I notice that one guard is
staring in our direction. I walk over to get my codpiece, which gleams in
the pre-dawn light. The guard continues to stare at my huge dick. I don't
say anything to him. It's not every day that you get to see a legend, so I
don't begrudge men taking a look at me when they can.

      I have to wait a minute before my dick returns to a manageable size
to put it back in my armor. I do keep my word though. In that minute, I let
Talisac sniff it by holding it over his nose.  He complains, but I know
better. He likes what he's getting.

      "You're a bastard," he says when I put my cock away.

      "Maybe."

      Talen walks over and kicks Talisac with his foot, "Don't tell anyone
what you saw."

      "Shy are we?" Talisac asks. "Your boyfriend isn't shy at all."

      Talen kneels and holds a knife to the doctor's throat. "I didn't make
a promise. I'll cut your throat open right now if you don't shut up."

      Talisac swallows nervously, but I do ready to stop Talen if I have
to.

      "I'm the only one that can cure your boyfriend. If you kill me,
there's no one left to save him."

      Shit. Why the fuck did he have to say that?

      Talen stares at me questioningly. "What's he talking about?"

      "Nothing," I say.

      "You haven't told him," Talisac states with a sneer.

      "Kian?"

      "I-I don't want to talk about this right now," I say, standing up. "I
need to take a piss. Just watch him to make sure he doesn't get out of his
ropes. I'll be back in a minute."

      Even though Talen looks exasperated that I'm holding something back
from him, he nods.

      I go in search of a stream and take a long hard leak near a group of
wildflowers. The sound of a woodpecker knocking away at a tree in the
wooded lowlands echoes through the forest. I shake off and stand there a
second hoping that Talen forgets what Talisac said. In the east dawn's rosy
light blooms; I wash myself in the stream at the edge of camp and just sit
there on my haunches, staring at the far bank with water dripping from my
face.

      There's no way he's going to forget. Talen's obsessed with me so in a
way, I'm screwed. So I resign myself to coming up with some lies to use.

      Ten minutes later, Talen joins me.

      I snap my head about at his approach, and he raises his hand with
caution. "Relax, he's still tied up. Are you ever going to tell me what
that was all about or will I need to get it from him when you aren't
around? You know I will, right?"

      He squats next to me and washes his hands and face. I point out a
ribbon of cum in his hair and he just smooths it back so that it's not
really visible. His grin looks so mischievous; it's not time for the lies
yet. I'll only fall back on those if he continues to be pushy about this.

      "I'm not going to tell you," I say after a minute.

      He opens his mouth to protest, but I see he knows better to argue the
point.

      "You're not protecting me from something. You're just keeping secrets
and that's frustrating."

      "You don't need to know," I tell him.

      "If it has to do with your health, I beg to differ."

      I shake my head. "No you don't."

      He sighs. We both listen to the water rushing by in front of
us. "This is nice," he says at last.  "The two of us watching the sun rise
together." He reaches out his hand, and I take it in mine.

      "I love you," he tells me.

      "You should. Do you know how many guys would kill to fuck me?"

      He rolls his eyes and kisses me.

      The first sun crests over the granite peaks, and Correldon wanders
over to us, his bow with the runes on it present in the grip of his left
hand. Talen and I break out some food from last night and the three of us
eat, washing down our meal with cool mountain water from a shared skin.

      "I will join you on your quest to the isle," the elf says. "But if we
leave, we must do so soon and take our parting of the human soldier,
Riaken. The gnome, Pink Hair, will be joining us for he says he has some
business in the city states on the Sea of Daryabar."

      "I don't have a problem with that," I state. "Talisac's coming with
us too."

      "I thought you intended to release him," the elf says. Talen stares
at me too.

      "Yeah...well things have changed. I need him a little while longer."

      "I see. And the girl?"

      I nod.

      The elf considers me carefully. "The sorceress is a strong woman, but
I don't trust the doctor. He's a flesh crafter of Chagidiel. And now that
he's free of the mountain, he'll be in communication with others of his
kind."

      "Not as long as he's bound," I say.

      The elf snorts. "So little you know of magic. The doctor can speak
with his allies using only his mind. Or did you not know this? His god is
the consort to the Queen of Demons. Have you ever dealt with Timeron
knights?"

      I actually didn't know any of this, but it doesn't change my
mind. "Of course I knew," I say.  "But his allies don't matter. I've
business with him, and the details of that are between him and me."

      "You will tell me, or I won't journey with you," Cory says.

      Fine. First lie, but I note it's not wasted because Talen is paying
close attention too. "He knows where to find Braedir. He's a guy in
Soulwarden that escaped its destruction. I'm going to kill him."

      "Braedir's alive?" Talen asks. "Why didn't you tell me? I want to
kill him too."

      I shake my head. "He's my mark. What he did to you and Angelaria is
bad, but not anything close to what he put me through. I'm going to gut him
slow...while he still breathes."

      "Fair enough," Talen says. "Can I at least help?"

      "Sure," I say. I look to Correldon and see that my story satisfies
him for now.

      He nods. "I can understand revenge. However, at the first scent of
betrayal," the elf warns, "I and Pink Hair are gone."

      "Fine."

      "Excellent. Go and ready your belongings, and I'll tell Riaken our
goodbyes."  With that, the svelte elf moves up the slope, heading for the
green-eyed soldier's tent. I finish my meal and wash my face and hands in
the fresh water of the brook. Then I go to speak with Talisac while Talen
goes to visit Angelaria.

      "We're leaving soon," I tell him. I cut his bonds and stand him up so
he can stretch his legs.  Then I watch as he goes to the bathroom in the
woods. "I don't want you telling the others about what you told me."

      I hear his piss striking the earth under a tree. "It's I who'll be
giving the orders," he states.

      "You think so?"

      He looks at me. "If you want to have the larva removed, then
yes. Otherwise, I refuse."

      I swallow hard, but he's called my bluff.

      "Once we're away from here, you no longer tie me up. Is that
understood?"

      I nod.

      "Good." He shakes himself off and puts himself away. Then he walks
over to me and attempts to pat me on the cheek but I grab his wrist.

      He flashes me an oily smile; I let him go.

      "Today you start a rigorous diet that you'll have to maintain until
the surgery. Eat only what I say you can eat...and drink sparingly. You
must be a little dehydrated for the worm to grow uncomfortable and begin to
descend down your spine. I'll give you a nod each time if I think it okay
for you to take a drink or to eat something. That way we can be discreet
with your companions around. You may, however, eat as much semen as you
like. Semen is toxic to the worm, and the more you ingest, the worse off it
will be for the larva making its home inside your body. A boy like you
shouldn't find it hard to find cocks to suck." He says that last part with
a smug grin.

      "Thank you for not saying a word to Talen," I say.

      "It's important for you to sweat, so I want you in full armor all of
the time and only sparingly without your helmet. I want this...suit...to
insulate you. You must be uncomfortably hot all of the time. However, it's
okay to have sex as much as you like as this keeps your heart rate up."

      I shake my head. "I'm not fucking you, so you can stop with the sex
talk."

      "You're no fun."

      "How long must I do this?"

      "I don't know," he says. "It could take weeks. The worm inside your
body can be frustratingly slow to respond to its physical environment. If
we make your body an uncomfortable place for it to live, it will look for a
home in your scrotum. This is the only cool area on your body, you know?
Only then can I fish it out through your penis." He grabs me by the
arm. "Before this is over, you should be aware that your appearance will
change. I'd say you'll be nothing but sinew, large cut muscles, veins, and
bone. Have you seen a man with no fat? Unless beauty is measured in the
amount of visible veins and deep cuts a person has, you'll be hideous. Oh
and I'll have to give you injections from time to time?"

      "Injections of what?"

      "A special brew. The science behind it is something your illiterate
mind can't understand, but I'd let you look at the pictures in my scrolls
if you'd like. Who knows...you might get something out of it?"

      "I'm not stupid," I say.

      He pats my cheek. "Of course you're not. I'm sure Talen and Angelaria
like you for your brain, right? That's probably how you got all your
friends in life...by being...so smart."

      I seriously want to punch him, but I don't. "Come on," I say. "Let's
go get Angelaria."

      We find my princess back at the brook. She's cleaning her hair and
skin with some soap and a soft sponge; Talen's stands guard a few feet
away, perched on a rock like an eagle overlooking its prey. When she's
done, she slips into a fresh shirt and some pants that Riaken gave her; the
wetness of her body makes her nipples hard. I admire hard. Then she slips
her dainty feet into a pair of boots that also belong to the soldier. Damn
she looks nice.

      Talen and I shoulder the supplies, each taking a pack filled with
food for the others and two water jugs a piece. Even though we plan on
following the brook down from the mountain, packing water is
prudent. Riaken hands me a knife, and Talen hangs a sword from his belt and
falls in next to me. Unlike me, however, Talen keeps his helmet off. The
day is hot, but I'm following Talisac's orders. As a result, sweat pours
down my body and soaks my boots, but it's a necessary evil. I want this
thing out of me. It's the only way my mind will ever feel secure again.

      The pink-haired gnome has by far the largest load. It's almost
comical watching him carry it; a thing nearly as large as his body. It fits
on his back like a tortoise shell.

      Our party follows a path behind the silver-haired ranger. Despite our
best efforts, he quickly leaves us behind. A little irritated, I break into
a jog, but the others just plod along at their own pace seemingly without a
care in the world. Soon, it's just Cory and I moving about a thousand feet
in front of the others. We descend rapidly through the meadow. To make
matters worse, Angelaria takes some time to wander amidst the meadow,
collecting samples of wild flowers and paintbrushes from the thick carpet
of green sprouting from these foothills. It eventually forces Cory to call
for a rest stop; I look to Talisac to see if it's okay to drink and eat
something. To my chagrin, he gives permission to the former but not the
latter.

      Innocently Talen offers up a handful of food, but I wave it off. "I'm
not hungry," I say after one swallow of water.

      "You've got to be starving," he says laughing.

      "I'm not, actually." Then I close my visor so I don't have to smell
his meal.

      "Suit yourself then," Talen says. He swallows the fruit and bread
with a happy grin on his face.

      Gods I love butter, and I watch him through the glass as he spreads
it on the crust.

      We stop often throughout the warm day. Each time, I take a few
swallows of water, but nothing to eat. My stomach complains loudly but no
one seems to notice. Finally at evening's light, the four of us arrive at
the entrance to a wide valley. Before us are the banks of a lazy river,
winding its way through multiple stands of spruce trees growing along the
edge of a vast forest.

      Steam rises from geysers that form a basin on the far side; they
flood the environs with the thick scent of drifting sulfur. It's
breathtaking country, and we make camp next to the river which takes its
name from these natural hot springs called "fireholes" by the dwarves of
the deep.

      Talen, eager to try out his fishing skill, creeps off into the
growing night to do some nocturnal exploration. I collapse next to
Angelaria and fashion a crude shelter for her using some pine branches. I
leave her to decorate it with the wild flowers she picked from the meadow
earlier that day.

      Correldon prepares an earthen pit for a small fire. While he's doing
that, I gather some branches and dry bits of wood from the surrounding
forest. The night vision on the inside of my visor is invaluable for
this. The ground beneath my boots is a little spongy, but under the trees
there's plenty of dry branches and bark suitable for burning. I load my
tired arms down and make my way back to camp.

      By the time Talen returns with a few fish, our fire is well
underway. I heat some of last night's leftovers for Angelaria and return to
her side while the others cook. She's fallen asleep, and I gently wake her
with my left hand and serve her some warm bread, meat, and a hot cider
drink that the gnome Pink Hair calls Cispra.  It smells so good, and I'm
filled with memories of huge apple orchards where the branches are all
laden with red, juicy fruit.

      "That was a long hike," she says to me, setting her mug aside. I roll
up my pack. It's soft and I'm planning to use it as my pillow, but I think
I should give her a shot at it first. "Thank you, Kian," she whispers and
then kisses me on the cheek.

      "I'll speak with the elf," I tell her. "I'll see if we can't slow our
pace down a little. Maybe he's just eager to get out of the
mountains. Honestly, I can't say that I don't blame him even though this
last day has been extremely beautiful."

      "Why don't you take off your helmet?" she asks.

      I smile but don't answer her. I hear the fish sizzling in the pan,
and Tethyr's teeth it makes me hungry.

      Angelaria shakes her head, ravishing night black hair falling about
that slender neck of hers.  "I've never been on this side of the Icewall
before. The mountain air here is crisp and has a certain tang to it." She
rests her head on my shoulder. "By all the gods in heaven I want you to
make love to me so bad, but I don't have any birth control."

      I swallow, feeling my dick get hard. "Birth control?" I ask. All
thoughts of how hungry I am have now fled.

      She stares at her belly and says. "I don't want to get pregnant, at
least for the time being. To ensure that I don't, I'll need to prepare a
potion before you pop my cherry." She kisses me delicately on the
lips. "You can wait, right? Just be thankful you can't get pregnant. Men
would think a lot different if they had to endure nine months to incubate
an offspring. But when you got forged from clay, you got the best of the
bargain with a night of unmitigated passion and absolutely no commitment."

      "That's not the way it is."

      She looks at me curiously before touching the side of my face. "You
look so thin. Very handsome...but thin."

      I say nothing.

      "Maybe you're different," she continues, "However, it's hard to think
that men as a species aren't that simple. You've to admit...men are a
little overwhelmed by the need to have sex. Women, well, we know what's
involved with the act a little more than men and because of that we're more
careful because one mistake can lead to nine months of hardship not to
mention the years afterward spent in trying to educate your child properly
and to provide for them until adulthood. I don't think men have that kind
of vision. To your credit, it's one of the things that make you so damned
charming. You spend your entire life trying to be coy and clever while we
spend our entire lives preparing for responsibility and motherhood."

      Talen's antics of trying to grab a fish out of the fire so he can eat
it draws my eye and gives me pause to grin. He keeps burning his fingers
and dropping the fish.

      "You made me drop it," he states, looking across the fire at the
gnome. Talen's completely oblivious to the fact that he could use his knife
to skewer it out of the fire or at least don his gauntlets and handle it
that way.

      "I did not make you drop it," Pink Hair says. "I merely said hand it
to me and you let go before I had a good grasp on the blasted thing."

      "Well, if gnomes didn't have such pudgy fingers, you'd be able to
hold onto things like fish a lot easier!  Don't blame me for your
shortcomings," he snaps. "Aha...got it." Then he yelps and drops it in the
dirt around the fire pit. Crestfallen, he stares at it lying between his
feet.

      "Bah," Pink Hair says. "Idiot!" The gnome leaves the edge of the
firelight and walks down to the river to wash some of his clothes.

      I imagine putting a little distance between him and Talen is a good
thing.

      Before bed, I eat half a fish. Despite the fact that I'm ravenously
hungry, Talisac signals that I'm to swallow no more. So I go wash up in the
warm waters close to the geyser and then don my armor which feels loose
over my ripped physique. As I examine the ridges of my muscles by
moonlight, I wonder how skinny I'm actually going to get. I can already see
every one of my ribs, and the cuts of my six pack are so stark that it's
difficult to imagine them more so.

      Why does the bad shit always happen to me?

      Correldon takes first watch. I rest uneasily and use Talen's shoulder
as my pillow. My dreams are troubled with images of enslavement. When I
close my eyes, I find myself wandering in dark caverns. There's an
omnipresent ruddy glow that casts the shadows of walkers on the wall.
However, I can't reach out to touch them my hands aren't mine to
control. The last dream shatters with a "pop" from the fire. I bolt awake,
armor venting sweat from multiple areas on my body. It's still dark outside
and Angelaria is asleep peacefully against the line of my body.

      Carefully, I leave our shelter, and go to Correldon who's busy
staring into the night around our camp. The elf's hand rests slack on the
wooden haft of his bow which glows with beautiful runes.

      "Do those do anything?" I ask, voice barely above a whisper. "I mean,
is your bow magical?"

      He nods. "Yes. Elves are magical creatures, Kian. It would seem
inappropriate for us to not possess magical items, don't you think? You
see, I string an arrow and then touch one of the runes which transform its
color because it's now enchanted with a spell. Each creates a different
effect."

      "Like what?"

      The first rune is one of teleportation. A target thus struck will
disappear and reappear within a hundred miles of me. I've actually
transported a hapless mortal like yourself a hundred miles into the
sky. But conversely, I could do it into the earth if I so desired. Needless
to say I never saw him again."

      I swallow uneasily. "I can understand that."

      "This one here's a rune of seeking. Once I've touched it, the arrow
will appear to turn three shades of yellow. When I release it, the missile
will follow a victim around corners or down pits or up trees until it
strikes. The third there is a rune of heart piercing. If I touch it, the
arrow will fly true and seek out the very heart in your chest. I've killed
many things in this manner before. The fourth is a rune of pyromancy. It'll
cause the arrow to explode in an enormous ball of fire, which burns to ash
nearly every living thing within sixty feet of its target. The fifth is a
rune of petrification... useful against enemies like trolls who have
incredible regenerative properties. It has the power to turn an entire
creature and its belongings into rock almost instantly. To see its effects
on the living makes even the strongest man shudder, Kian. It's not for the
squeamish."

      "Where did you get such a marvelous weapon?" I ask, wiping the swept
from the end of my nose. The fire in the hearth is hot, and it's like my
armor is absorbing it all.

      "It was given to me for a service I performed for the Queen of the
Elven nation of Symardiearre.  It was once wielded by the Elven knights of
the Kuanni before they broke with the council of Symardiearre by taking
consul with demons of the Shadow World."

      "Demons...blasted evil things.  I can't understand why anyone would
associate with them, much less ally with them.  I've seen a demon only
once, and it's something I'll never forget easily.  It'll probably give me
nightmares for years to come."

      He stares at me with a peculiar if not curious gaze. "And yet you
lived to tell about it?  Please...do not spare any details. What demon did
you see?"

      "It was almost a year ago...the night that Angelaria, Talen, and I
first entered the Valion keep on the far side of those mountains. We'd come
up from the Mirimar and stayed in a town that was completely empty--like
something had come through and scooped them all out of their houses.  Well,
there were dead horses in the barn and they'd started to rot and there was
decaying food on the tables. But it was a place where we could
re-provision, and a blizzard was rolling into the area.  We wanted to get
shelter quickly you see. Anyway, during the night, I saw something. It
looked like a shaggy beast with great tentacles that I imagine drip with
otherworldly slime. And it was walking on the frozen lake. I only saw it
for an instant, though, like you see fog on a cold pane of glass. It's
there for a moment and then it's gone. That kind of thing. But I could have
sworn it was a demon.  Later, the next morning, the three of us walked out
onto the frozen lake and found the villagers stored beneath the ice in the
dark and watery depths.  It was like the demon was using the cold water as
a personal meat locker. Angelaria says that the thing was letting the ice
freeze their blood so that it could eat them."

      The elf's face takes on a startled expression. "I've never seen such
a beast. But if you did not face it or know of its fate, it must still be
free to roam the mountains looking for other victims."

      "Probably. I'd think that there's at least a good chance that it's
still killing," I say. "Do you think it's similar to the ones that the
Kuanni consulted with in the past?"

      "I don't think so," Correldon replies. "The Kuanni are still elven,
and elves do not like the cold. The creature that you encountered is more
than likely an Ogavran Kor, a Snowman of Vas in the ancient
tongue. Although I do not know how it is that an Ogavran Kor has been
allowed to escape its master. The sorcery required to breach the distance
between Vas of Kleef and Wynwrayth is immense. It would demand the use of a
Crystal Gate, and that, my friend, is only available for use by the Great
Houses of Wynwrayth."

      "The Great Houses?"

      "There are eight. In order they are Kala-Pur, home of the corobidian
mines of Kala-Pur, Great House Vas, Great House Sulas, Great House Valion,
Great House Norem, Great House Daar, Great House Veverand, and Great House
Zim.  Kala-Pur is the only one of them that is not ruled over by a god or
goddess.  Instead, the mines are run by a soothsayer of immense power known
to the others as Azmalak Kring.  He is over three thousand years old and
perhaps the most formidable black wizard in the Houses of Sul."

      I nod, listening to his words while casting my eyes upward at the
stars, which twinkle brightly amidst the pointed shadows of treetops. A
breeze from the north brushes my cheek. It's chilly, but does little to
cool my dripping body. That's when I notice something out in the darkness.
It's barely visible, but there's a silhouette of someone standing beyond
the edge of the firelight.  Correldon notices it too, and he raises his bow
cautiously and strings it with the deft fingers of his right hand.

      "What is it?" I ask.

      He doesn't say a word.

      The shadow rises up to move and Correldon raises his bow, takes aim,
and fires. There's a cry from the darkness followed by the sound of a body
crashing into the shallows of the river.  Whatever it is, still
lives. Splashing near the bank confirms this.

      Talen bolts awake, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

      I hold my finger to my lips, motioning for him to be quiet. Correldon
leaps to his feet and races into the shadows and a groan emits from near
the edge of the river.

      "Stay here!" I tell him.

      I race after the elf.

      In a black so deep it's difficult to see anything, I stumble forward
calling out "Correldon" as loud as I dare. Near the bank of the Firehole,
my foot strikes the dead hand of a man about my height but twice my
weight. I curse myself for not thinking to use the night vision and close
my visor. Once I do this, I see that the corpse at my feet has its face
buried in mud. Correldon leans over him, inspecting the body. He withdraws
a slender broadsword that he's sunk into the man's back as he crawled from
the water's edge. In his leg, I note the broken shaft of the arrow
Correldon shot at him earlier.

      "You killed him?" I ask. "How do you know that he was hostile?"

      The elf regards me with a blank-faced expression. He rolls the man
over with his foot, and I see that he's not exactly human. And boy does he
have a fearsome appearance in all that banded mail armor. A shock of long
greasy hair is attached to the back of his war axe.

      "Need a weapon?" The elf cuts the axe free of its leather strap and
hands it to me.

      "I don't know how to use it. I've not had much cause to use an
axe. Besides, I have these." I press a button on the inside of my visor
unleashing my long cibrian wrist blades.

      "Nice," Cory says. "But an axe is useful. And besides, what's there
to know? Use the sharp end of it to cleave a man's skull in half."

      I grimace. There's nothing elegant about an axe. "I'll stick to my
own weapons thank you." I drop the axe into the mud at his feet.

      "You are as unwise as most humans. I've no idea how you've been so
successful as a species."

      "Unwise? If I tried to use that axe I'd probably cut myself to pieces
sooner than I'd be able to defend myself. Give me a sword and I'll show you
some moves you've never seen."

      "This dead man...he is Ekthor. I've mentioned them to you before. But
this," he indicates with a gesture to a ring on the man's finger, "is
Kuanni in origin. Kuanni use the Ekthor as scouts because of their
excellent night vision. He's probably been watching us since sundown. By
killing him, it buys us time to pack up and leave the area before the
Kuanni realize that he's missing."

      "We can't leave...not until morning. If we go traipsing around here
in this darkness, then someone is going to get hurt. And we can't use
lights or the Kuanni would just follow us."

      Correldon stands to his full height and walks past me, his feet
barely making any sound at all as he passes through the tall grass that
sprouts in thick patches all around us. I look down once more at the dead
Ekthor scout and then turn to follow him. I set my jaw and walk back into
the light of the campfire ready to confront him.

      "Look...you know that I'm right," I say, catching up to him."

      "They come for us, little boy," the elf states, "whether you like it
or not. I know you and your companion can fight, but if we wait here,
they'll overwhelm us. They prize female humans highly as slaves. Do you
want HER blood on your hands?"

      Before I can say anything, a strange horn blares in the distance, and
it fills my heart with dread.

                                    *****

      Chapter Twenty-Four next week.