Females of Vulvar Page 14

  The female turned and spoke to the one she called Bosk. He stood up and walked over to us. He pushed the female away and grabbed hold of the tube. He yanked on it forcefully, causing me to scream.

  “Please tell him to stop,” I said to the female. “It is attached to my body. It won’t come off.”

  The female translated.

  “Bosk wants you to take it off,” she said. “He wants it.”

  “It doesn’t come off,” I said. “It is locked in place. It requires a special device to remove it, which I don’t have.”

  The female translated again to Bosk what I’d said to her.

  He pulled a long knife from the waist of his loincloth.

  “Bosk says to take it off,” the female said. “Or, he says he will remove it.”

  “No, please,” I said fearfully. “It has no value.”

  Bosk raised the edged weapon, and I clenched my eyes shut, ready to scream again. Then I felt the blade slashing the bonds holding me to the wooden frame. I slipped down off it onto my feet and almost fell. Two males beside me each grabbed an arm to keep me from falling. Then they spun me around. I felt the knife slash the bindings around my wrists and then my ankles. The two creatures holding onto me turned me back around to face the one called Bosk. My eyes widened in shock and surprise.

  For the first time, I noticed that Bosk had a leather thong around his neck. The thin strap was wrapped around and tied to a rectangular metal box. On the portion facing me, I saw in the firelight three symbols—the wadjet, the ankh, and the flail and crook. Bosk was wearing the artifact, the object of my search, around his neck like some bulbous necklace.

  “Bosk wants you to take it off now,” the female repeated.

  I’d been unconsciously rubbing my wrists to restore the circulation, my eyes riveted on the artifact.

  “What?” I said to the female. “Oh, I told you, I cannot remove the tube. I don’t have the device required to remove it. Others put this on me. I didn’t put it on myself, and I can’t remove it.”

  Bosk continued glaring at me, brandishing the knife. Then he squatted on his haunches to get a closer look at the tube. When he leaned forward, the artifact around his neck flew forward with great rapidity and force and stuck to the tube. To my dismay, the device released from the ring and dropped to expose the smaller ring inserted through my body piercing.

  Bosk snatched at the artifact, yanking it away from the tube, falling backward onto his backside before springing to his feet, holding the knife at the ready.

  “Wait!” I shouted. “Wait, I can remove it now.”

  It seemed the artifact was strongly magnetic and had unlatched the tube’s internal locking device. By feel, I detached the piercing ring from the attachment point inside the tube. The device came off in my hand. For the first time in many months, I was free of it.

  I offered the tube to Bosk. He snatched it from my hand with a grunt. Then he pointed at my crotch.

  “Bosk wants the ring too,” the female said.

  “Of course,” I said.

  Reaching down, I worked my squishy shaft and testicles out of the ring and then handed it to Bosk. I now stood before a crowd of savages who wanted me dead, naked except for my sandals.

  I gasped as the female reached out and grabbed my penis. I tried to back away, but the wooden frame still standing behind me prevented my escape. She continued pulling and kneading my manhood in her hand.

  “Please stop,” I croaked.

  No one had touched me in such a long time. I hadn’t been able to do so myself. Predictably, my phallus grew quickly erect from the stimulation. The female looked at me and smiled.

  “You want to breed with me?” she said.

  It had been so long since I’d had any release. For a moment, the female looked almost human enough in the dim lighting to tempt me. She might have persuaded me. But then I regained my senses.

  “No, I don't wish to breed with you,” I stammered.

  The female laughed. “Yes, you want to breed with me,” she said. “Look. Your male parts betray you.”

  Having examined his new treasures, Bosk stepped forward again. He brushed the female’s hand away from my privates and shoved her to the side. He then spoke to her harshly in the unknown language.

  The female appeared chastened.

  “Bosk says I cannot breed with you,” she said, unwilling to meet my gaze. “Bosk says you will show him how you found your way here. Then Bosk will kill you. The people have spoken.”

  I sighed in relief. Ultimately, the cave dwellers might yet kill me, but as long as I remained alive, there was at least the slim hope of escape.

  “Yes,” I said to the female. “I will show Bosk where I entered these caverns. If he takes me back to where your people captured me, I can show him.”

  The female spoke to Bosk for several moments. He grunted and made a short reply.

  “Yes,” she said. “Bosk and the others will take you back to the passageway where they found you.”

  I nodded.

  The female looked wistfully at me. “I regret we cannot breed.”

  “Imagine how I feel,” I said, trying to sound sincere.

  Chapter 19

  The Passageway

  After binding my wrists again, this time in front, one of the cave dwellers tied a leather thong around my neck as a leash. Bosk left the tube and ring with the female, and he and seven of his compatriots escorted me back to the passageway where they had captured me.

  When we stepped into the passageway, I pointed with my bound hands toward where I’d left the rope dangling from the burial chamber above. Bosk grunted, said something unintelligible, and roughly shoved me forward in the direction I’d indicated.

  The closer we got to the rope, the more crushing the disappointment I felt. With my wrists bound and the odds, there was no way I could overpower them and escape. My greatest hope had been that Idril and her warrior would have come looking for me when I didn’t return. I’d prayed we would encounter them. But, with only a scant few meters to go, that hope too was snuffed out. I only hoped they would kill me quickly.

  To my dismay, as we approached the rope, still hanging down from inside the bottomless sarcophagus, two torches were burning brightly on the floor in the middle of the passageway. Our party halted in confusion at the unexpected sight. The creatures began talking rapidly among themselves.

  Suddenly, Idril and Phaerl stepped out of the shadows of a natural alcove in the side of the passageway where they had concealed themselves. Their bows were up, and they had their arrows drawn. An arrow whizzed close by me, sinking into the chest of the creature gripping my thong leash. Then there was the thump of more arrows finding homes. In mere moments, four of the cave dwellers were down, skewered with Vulvarian arrows. Only Bosk and four of his fellows remained. They had recovered from their momentary paralysis brought on by the sudden, unexpected attack and rushed the two warriors with their upraised swords.

  Idril and Phaerl leapt forward without hesitation, their swords drawn, and the clash of steel rang off the walls of the narrow passageway. I stooped and picked up the sword of the nearest dead cave dweller and launched myself toward the fray. Both Idril and Phaerl were dueling two combatants each. Just as Idril whirled about and dispatched her two adversaries with quick slashes and thrusts, Phaerl plunged her blade into the belly of Bosk just as I thrust mine into the back of the last remaining mutant.

  “You both have great sword skills,” I said to the warriors.

  “On this world, those without sword skills end up dead upon them,” Idril said, sheathing her blade.

  “In the name of the Goddess-Queens, Tobias Hart, where is your tunic?” Phaerl exclaimed.

  “And, where is your tube,” Idril gasped.

  “The cave dwellers took them from me,” I said.

  Idril rushed over to the nearest dead cave dweller and stripped off his breechcloth. She glanced at the body in disgust, then hurled the garment at me.

  �
��Put that on, it seems your size,” Idril said. Glancing at me and then once more at the naked creature on the floor, she exclaimed, “All male creatures are so revolting.”

  The greasy loincloth smelled awful, but I hurriedly tied it around my waist to cover myself.

  Idril and Phaerl rushed about, retrieving the precious arrows from the dead bodies. Because of the barbed, bladed tips, they had to push the shafts through the dead bodies and pull them out feathers last.

  “We must hurry,” Idril said. “Others may come. Up the rope, Phaerl.”

  Phaerl grabbed the rope and climbed.

  “Come, Tobias Hart.”

  “Wait,” I said.

  Rushing to the body of Bosk, I rolled him over on his back. I pulled the knife from his waistband and slashed the leather thong around his neck, freeing the metal box. I held it up triumphantly.

  “Is that the artifact?” Idril said in wonderment.

  “Yes,” I said. “The cave dwellers beat us to it. They may have stolen the tube, but now we have this. It was an excellent trade.”

  “Thanks to the Goddess-Queens,” Idril said. “Now, we can leave this horrid place.”

  Idril climbed the rope to the burial chamber next, seemingly without effort. I threw the artifact up to her. Then, I climbed the rope, not so effortlessly. In the end, the two females had to finish hoisting me up. Outside the empty sarcophagus, I untied and coiled the rope.

  “It’s now well into the night,” Idril said. “Let us return to the tomb above. We will wait there until dawn.”

  “I agree,” I said. “There is no way we could find a river crossing in the darkness.”

  After lighting the last two remaining torches, we climbed the stone staircase to the tomb at the surface. Once there, we collapsed on the floor with our backs against the walls to rest. By the light of the torches, I handled the artifact carefully and examined it closely for the first time. The metal box was very light. When I shook it, it made no sound. Puzzled, I studied every inch of it, trying to determine if it might be opened. It appeared solid with no seams or indentations to reveal a lid. Fatigued and tired of the puzzle, I placed the artifact on the floor beside me. I leaned my head back against the wall and closed my eyes. I could hear Idril breathing softly beside me.

  “Does it please you, Tobias Hart, that the creatures removed the tube?” she whispered.

  “Strangely, I feel conflicted about it,” I said. “I’d worn it so long it became a part of me. Now it feels as if something is missing, and it makes me feel uneasy.”

  “Your mistress will not be pleased when she learns the tube is gone,” Idril said.

  “I expect you’re right,” I said. “But, it was not my doing. The cave dwellers took it from me by force.”

  “How did they remove it without the required device?”

  “It attracted the artifact,” I said. “The artifact is highly magnetic. As you saw, the leader wore it about his neck on a leather thong. When he bent to inspect the tube, the artifact flew to it, and the tube disengaged.”

  “Ah, yes,” Idril said. “The device used to remove the tube is also magnetized and works similarly.”

  “Yes, I suspected as much.”

  “You know, during the nights on the ship, many times I heard you pleasuring your mistress.”

  “Yes,” I said. “I suspected you might have. Sometimes my mistress could not keep quiet.”

  Idril chuckled softly.

  “Do you find it pleasurable to pleasure your mistress in the way she requires?”

  “Yes, to a degree,” I said. “But, wearing the tube, it also causes me extreme frustration.”

  “I see,” Idril said thoughtfully. “It makes you wish to copulate with her?”

  “Yes, but as you know, that isn’t allowed here on this world.”

  “No,” Idril said. “It’s a serious crime. If your mistress permitted you to copulate with her, the council would have you castrated and then impaled.”

  “Yes, I’m painfully aware of that.”

  Idril slid closer to me and rested a hand on my thigh.

  “I’m curious, Tobias Hart.”

  “About?”

  “How it feels to be pleasured by a male in the manner you pleasure your mistress. In the cabin aboard the ship, it sounded as if it delighted her.”

  “You’ve never experienced it?” I said.

  “No male has ever touched me,” Idril said thoughtfully. “But, I’m uncertain of exactly how it is you please your mistress. In the cabin, I heard only. I did not see it.”

  “You wish to know about it?”

  “Yes, only to satisfy my curiosity, you understand.”

  “It is a practice from Earth,” I said. “Where males and females interact differently than here on Vulvar. The male caresses the female’s sex with his mouth and tongue to give her pleasure.”

  Idril squirmed noticeably beside me. Her breath seemed to have quickened. From the even, rhythmic breathing from across the small room, it appeared Phaerl was sound asleep.

  “Do you desire me, Tobias Hart?” Idril said in a sultry whisper.

  “Yes,” I blurted without thinking.

  “You wish to show me how you pleasure your mistress?”

  “If you wish it.”

  Idril pushed up off the floor, then reached down and grabbed my hand.

  “Not here,” she whispered. “Let us return to the passageway below.”

  “All right,” I said, getting to my feet. I felt my member growing firm at the thought of what was about to happen.

  Quietly we stole from the upper tomb, passed through the open doorway, and descended the staircase. The torches had burned out, so we moved slowly and carefully by feel. Finally, we reached the passageway at the foot of the stairs. We sought each other in the darkness. Idril leaned against me in the dark and whispered in my ear.

  “I only wish to experience what you described,” she said. “Do not remove the breechcloth and do not attempt to copulate with me, or I will swiftly remove your man parts with my sword.”

  “I understand,” I said.

  Idril pulled away. I heard her unbuckling her armour and placing it on the floor. In the darkness, she found my hand again and gently pulled me to the floor of the passageway. In the absence of light, I couldn’t see her but sensed she was lying on her back. I moved down her muscular legs by touch and felt her thighs open.

  “Pleasure me, Tobias Hart,” she whispered seductively.

  Bending to the task, the tantalizing scent of her betrayed her heightened arousal. I placed my lips lightly on her succulent, moist flesh, and gently kissed it. Then I began softly caressing her with my tongue. Soon Idril was writhing beneath me. She grabbed my head in both of her strong hands and ground herself against my mouth and tongue. After only minutes, I felt her body stiffen for a moment before she writhed again in ecstasy as she climaxed with her hips bucking hard against me.

  “Continue, Tobias Hart,” she moaned. “Do not stop.”

  Eagerly I complied. We continued for what must have been an hour. I lost count of her climaxes. She tried to be silent, but frequently deep moans and occasional mewling cries escaped her lips. Finally, she pushed my face away, sighing.

  “No more,” she said.

  I laid my head on her quivering thigh, listening to her ragged breathing.

  “By the Goddess-Queens, I now understand why your mistress likes it so much,” she whispered with satisfaction.

  We lay on the floor for some fifteen minutes more. Then she gently pushed me away.

  “We must return to the tomb above before Phaerl awakens,” she said. “It must be near dawn.”

  I got up from the floor and listened as she rustled about, finding, and donning the various pieces of previously discarded armour. After several minutes, she had dressed again.

  “Come,” she said, starting up the stairs.

  I followed. When we gained the landing and reentered the tomb, Phaerl was still peacefully sleeping. I wal
ked with Idril to the exterior tomb opening. The sky was still gray, but on the horizon, the first rays of light promised the Vulvarian sun would soon appear. All was quiet outside the tomb.

  “We have few arrows remaining,” Idril said. “We must do ur best to avoid encountering those creatures again.”

  “They seem unwilling to enter the area of the city where we found the temple,” I said. “Perhaps we could follow the river north and find a crossing opposite it. We might slip back into the city without notice and make our way back to the building where the others are.”

  “A good plan,” Idril said.

  Phaerl appeared behind us, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

  “Shall we depart this place, commander?” she said.

  “Yes,” Idril said. “Let us go.”

  The females collected their bows and quivers. I picked up the artifact and threw the coiled rope over my head and shoulders. Together we stepped out into the gathering grey dawn.

  Chapter 20

  The Return March

  The trek upriver was arduous. We had long since emptied our water flasks the previous day. My stomach growled with hunger. But stoically, Idril led us forward. We stopped for a brief rest just short of some ruins along the banks of the river ahead.

  “I think we are across from that government district now, or near to it,” I said.

  “Yes,” Idril said. “At those ruins ahead, we’ll move to the river bank and seek a crossing.”

  Some fifteen minutes later, we arrived at the ruins after resuming the march. Powerful weapons seemed to have destroyed the structures during the ancient war. The buildings had collapsed. Much of the debris had fallen into the river bed below.

  “It seems we might cross the river atop the rubble,” Idril said, peering down from beside the ruins. “The water is shallow here, but we must remain alert for Telarions.”

  With Phaerl in the lead, we warily descended the embankment to where the piles of rubble bridged the brown water. We halted and looked up and down the river carefully, but saw no sign of Telarions. Still, I would have felt no temptation to wade the shallow river.