Immunity, page 3
“Ask her if Raymond McLean told her men weren’t welcome. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he omitted that from his report.”
“Will do,” he said. “I wish we’d known.”
“I think you can thank McLean for your troubles.”
“Oh, we will,” Rhys said. “The man is an ass.”
It took moments to sort out which gear would return to Earth. We watched as the men stepped back through the portal. The elves saw to the rest of the gear, and then we mounted up.
* * * *
Travel was interesting. It wasn’t remotely a straight line. There was no road or even a path. I think we were following game trails.
About half the elves stayed with our party; the other half disappeared into the forest, I presumed scouting for danger. From time to time, we’d see them. From time to time, they communicated through whistles. I didn’t really ask.
They kept the humans together, and Aniyah stuck to me like glue. All three of us were looking everywhere. Most of the trip was in deep forest, although we did skirt the edges of several lakes, most of them small, but one fairly sizeable.
The elves were quiet, and Chasianna told us, “We don’t announce ourselves. Please limit the noise as best you can.” Soft voices were acceptable, but speaking loudly enough to be heard from the back of our troop to the front was not.
For the most part, I was too awed to really speak. I looked everywhere.
We saw animals, most of them of the small, woodland creature variety. But twice, Chasianna said, “Be wary of those. They can be aggressive.” And two of the elves interposed themselves as we passed, the creatures watching us.
We didn’t see anything that would qualify as horrors. There were no creatures twisted by magic, no bog monsters or night wraiths. I asked about that.
“We’re avoiding their territories.”
I stared long and hard at Chasianna, who didn’t volunteer more information. I couldn’t tell if she was teasing me. Finally, I couldn’t stand it. “Night wraiths?”
“There are a variety of nocturnal creatures you might give such a name,” she said.
“Creatures of magic.”
“Yes.”
“Dangerous?”
“Some, yes.”
“There are reasons there are twelve of you instead of a much smaller number.”
“Yes.”
“I have another question.”
“I am not surprised.” She smiled though.
“Why aren’t the insects bothering us?”
“Magic.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
The travel wasn’t easy. None of us were accustomed to spending time in the saddle. Even I hadn’t ridden more than a couple of hours at a time in two decades. None of us complained. What surprised me was I didn’t detect any sneers from the elves when they saw us moving around stiffly. Instead, each of us was sort of adopted. The first night, after a lovely dinner, Lusharia turned to me. “Come.” She helped me up and led me to one of the low pavilions they’d set up. “Sit.”
“What are we doing?”
“Trust me.”
I eyed her, but then I turned around and sat on the bedding just inside the tiny tent. She knelt down before me and took my boots off. “Are you sure you want to do that?”
“Trust me,” she repeated. She produced a damp towel. I was shocked as she gently washed my feet. “Undress.”
“What are you doing?”
“Why do you ask questions? Why can you not trust me?”
“Why can’t you tell me what you’re doing?”
She sighed but then pulled out a stoppered bottle. “What is that?”
“You ache. Perhaps you prefer someone else.”
“You’re going to…”
“Yes.”
I stopped arguing. Lusharia wasn’t satisfied until I was entirely undressed and lying down on the bedding.
She began with my feet, which didn’t hurt, but what she did was magic, regardless, possibly actual magic. It took her, at most, three minutes before I was moaning in pleasure.
“You will learn to trust me,” she said a little smugly.
“Please don’t stop.”
She chuckled. She didn’t stop.
The oil was magic. Her hands were magic, too. I moaned my pleasure, and from other tiny tents, I heard other moans and quietly spoken words of thanks and encouragement.
I don’t know when I fell asleep.
* * * *
I woke sometime later. It was dark, and I wondered where I was. “Do not be frightened.”
“I fell asleep.”
“You were supposed to.”
“You’re very good at that, Lusharia.”
“I am pleased you enjoyed it.”
“The humans are slowing you down.”
“Yes,” she admitted. “As expected. Do not worry. No one begrudges an easy trip.”
“Are we taking you from other responsibilities?”
“The Khaleesi has given us this responsibility.”
“Excuse me? The what?”
She chuckled. “Khaleesi.”
“That’s a joke, right?”
“Why would it be a joke?”
“I think you are teasing me.”
“If it’s any consolation, her name is not Daenerys.”
“You know exactly why I think you’re teasing me,” I said.
“It was meant as a joke, but the joke spread,” Lusharia explained. “The day she sat upon the throne in Algonae City, someone declared, All Hail the Khaleesi.”
“Does she call herself that?”
“She made it her official title,” Lusharia confirmed. She laughed. “Chasianna will answer if we call her Sansa.”
“I think I’ll stick to the name she offered me.”
“That is probably best,” she agreed.
“I bet most of you have no idea what any of this is about.”
“We didn’t. We do now. I have never been to Earth. Do you believe Chasianna resembles Sansa Stark?”
“The hair color matches,” I said. “Do you have a… I’m sorry, I don’t know the word. An alternative name?”
She taught me a few words and then said she is sometimes called Lusha. “Only a shortening of my name for use in more private moments.”
“And is this a name I should use for you?”
There was movement and then fingers on my cheek. I wondered if she saw far better in the dark than I did. “That would depend upon whether you let me seduce you.” She brushed my cheek before her hand withdrew. But I knew in that moment that if she put any effort into it, she wouldn’t meet much resistance. “Perhaps you prefer another.”
“I am…” I paused. “Why would you want me?”
“You have confidence problems?”
“On this topic? Absolutely.”
She laughed. “It is just a traveling dalliance,” she said. “Be careful falling in love with elves.”
“I consider myself warned,” I said. “But that doesn’t answer my question.”
“You are interesting. Confident at times, unsure at others. We drew straws.”
“Actual straws?”
“Blades of grass,” she said. “Are you offended?”
“I don’t know. Do you consider yourself as having won or lost?”
She chuckled and touched my cheek again. “That will depend upon whether you let me seduce you.” Her hand withdrew again, but then she asked. “Are you cold?”
“A little.”
“Roll away, and I will hold you.”
I didn’t even question it. I rolled to my other side, and then she pressed against my back. I realized we were both entirely undressed. And she felt really, really good. She kissed the back of my neck. “I don’t think you’re going to fight me very hard.”
“I think you’re right.”
“Sleep now.”
I did.
* * * *
We had a pattern. The second day of travel was every bit as difficult, and our campsite not remarkably different. When Lusharia took my hand, I let her draw me to the tent. I offered to return the favor from last night, but she said, “No. You need this. I do not. Do as you’re told.” She pointed.
I didn’t fight her.
The next day, it was late afternoon when we rode into a small village. I didn’t even realize we were on the edge of one, but we came around a large tree, and there it was, right in front of us.
It was a mixed village, elves and humans. I didn’t see a single human male, only girls and women.
We took notice, and I might have liked to have gotten to know people, but we weren’t really given a chance. But I would learn one thing.
I didn’t share a common language with any humans of Algonae. They spoke neither Elvish or English. And I wondered if any modern Persians could speak with them after a thousand years of separation. Language shifts, after all. They might have better luck with written words, if these women could read and write.
I wondered if they could.
There was an inn. It was small, but they could accommodate us with much sharing of beds. We had proper baths, a lovely meal in the common room, and I slept like a babe, Lusharia holding me all night long.
* * * *
“You’re so good at that,” I moaned the next night.
“There’s something else I’m good at.” She rubbed my bottom for a moment, but then her hand reached down further. I found myself automatically spreading my legs for her. She brushed me, just a touch. “Your body says Yes,” she whispered, leaning down.
I turned my head. “My lips also say Yes.”
“Do they?” She kissed my ear. “This is joy, not commitment.”
“A travel fling,” I said in English. I tried to roll over to face, her, but she pinned me in place.
“My way,” she declared. “What did your words mean?”
“Travel,” I said. I translated that. “Fling is harder. A brief union, meant in shared joy, but no future expectations.”
“Perhaps an expectation of friendship,” she said.
“Yes.”
“Then we are agreed.” She stroked me again, and a third time, and I squirmed.
“You’re so beautiful,” I said.
“You can’t even see me.”
“But I remember.”
I don’t know if what we did was lovemaking. She took me. She held me there, and she raised my passions. And then she lifted my hips as her fingers entered me. She took me, and she spent the time whispering to me, sweet things, things about me she’d noticed. She praised my quick mind and my sure hand with my mount.
And she told me things she wanted to do to me, many things, and I found myself saying, “Yes,” over and over, “Yes” to each one.
I came, and I came hard, crying out as I shuddered, squeezing my legs together to trap her hand. She gathered me to her as I panted, holding me, rocking me.
And then she turned my head and kissed me, our first kiss. I turned in her arms, wrapping mine around her neck. We kissed, and we touched, and then she guided my mouth to one, perfect breast.
“Lick,” she ordered. “And nip. Don’t stop.”
She slid a hand down and found my center. I don’t know how I was ready so quickly, but she held my head in place with one hand while she took me a second time. This time, my cries were muffled against her chest.
Lusharia laid me down, holding me as I panted, slowly growing quiet. She brushed my lips with her fingers, and I took them into my mouth, cleaning my taste from her. “Very good,” she whispered. “Lovely girl.”
And then she threw a leg over me, facing the other way. She moved upwards, pinning my arms, offering herself to me.
I buried my face.
She had her own flavor, her own scent. It was… I didn’t have the words. At first, I lapped with little art, but over time I calmed down. “There,” she whispered. “Nice, very nice.”
I discovered what she liked, but at the same time, I was ravenous, and so I intentionally drew it out, teasing her so it would last. But she pressed herself to me, and I became helpless, giving her exactly what she wanted. She called out, and there was a rush besides, which I drank greedily until she pulled away from me, twisting around to kiss and lick at my lips before pulling me into her arms. We panted together.
She didn’t ask if she was my first elf, although she was. I didn’t ask if I was her first human; I didn’t think I was. None of that mattered.
I might have dozed, but then she rolled me back onto my stomach, and she took me again. I was still panting before she rolled onto her back and guided me where she wanted me.
We shared our bodies for hours, and from the sounds around us, I knew we weren’t the only ones.
* * * *
She took me once more in the morning, and her own pleasures, too.
But she was sweet to me over breakfast, sharing the touches lovers share. And around us, I saw others doing the same.
I was mildly surprised to see both Alloralla and Shael offering the same sort of touches to Hillary. I was far more surprised to see Calarel, Selussa, and Elanil surrounding Aniyah. She carried the look of someone even more satiated than I was.
In future nights, the combinations shifted. Lusha was my constant, but I spent more than one night the focused attention of more than one elf.
It had become a deeply enjoyable journey.
* * * *
We had one significant encounter with the forest creatures. I didn’t identify the danger until after it was over.
There were whistles. A moment later, Chasianna was issuing orders. Elves moved to each human, pulling us from the saddles and dropping to the ground with us. More elves took the horses.
“Aelua,” Chasianna said.
The elf moved forward. I looked up from my place on the ground, Laerdya perched over me. “Stay down,” she ordered. And then she wrapped arms around me, covering my mouth with her hand. “Don’t fight me,” she said into my ear. “Try very hard not to draw attention. Do not scream; you’ll attract more.”
More what?
I didn’t fight her.
There was a screech, then more screeches. I couldn’t quite tell the direction. But then, darting around the trees, I saw wings, massive wings. I couldn’t believe a creature that large could fly through the trees.
There was one at first, but more would arrive. Dirty-white wings, and a naked woman, her hair wild. She was beautiful and quite clearly deadly. She came to a stop, beating at the air to hover in place, moving back and forth left to right. She opened her mouth and screeched again.
“Harpies,” Laerdya said. “If they take one of you, we won’t get you back.”
Aelua stood alone, facing the creature, her hands up. She was chanting, her hands glowing.
Chasianna stepped up behind her. “We have no quarrel. Be gone!”
Another of the creatures arrived, then three more together. They formed a half circle around us. They screeched.
One darted forward, heading for Hillary. She screamed into Yrneha’s hand, but then Alloralla was there, brandishing her sword. She gave the harpy a serious strike, but she only used the flat. The harpy screeched and withdrew.
“We have no quarrel!” Chasianna yelled. “Do not make us hurt you.”
Two dived at Aniyah. Unlike Hillary and me, she was struggling with Seldenna, but the elf had pinned her easily. Laerdya stepped in between, and then Shael. They drove the harpies back. When one took a second dive, Laerdya used the edge, just a scratch along the harpy’s leg. She gave a fresh screech, this one of pain.
“Aelua,” Chasianna said.
Aelua yelled a word, a word of power, and then she thrust with her hands. The harpies were thrown away from us, and behind them, the trees were pushed back as if by a sudden wind. The harpies tumbled, two of them slamming against trees, and then together, they wheeled and quickly flew away.
Everything grew quiet except for Aniyah’s struggles and complaints. “Let them up,” Chasianna said.
Aniyah threw Seldenna from her, yanking out a sword and brandishing in the direction of the departed creatures. “What the fuck!”
“Tell her quiet,” Chasianna ordered.
“Aniyah,” I said in English. “Voices carry.”
“I don’t care.”
“Our hosts do, and they know this land. We do not.”
She took several deep breaths but then asked in a more reasonable tone, “What were those things?”
“Harpies,” Chasianna offered.
“Wait. Wait. Don’t tell me. Very dangerous.”
“Yes,” the elf confirmed. “Not to us. But to you.”
“I can hold my own.”
“Perhaps, but you are loud.”
Aniyah glared at her but then she nodded. “I know how to be quiet.”
Chasianna considered her then gestured to Aniyah’s sword. “Do you know how to use that?”
“Yes.”
“As well as we do?”
“Probably not.”
“Will you follow my orders?”
“Yes,” I said. “She will.”
Aniyah paused then nodded. “Yes.”
“If we have any more excitement, you will help guard the emissary. If you make a single sound louder than a whisper, you will spend the rest of the encounter sleeping.”
Aniyah paused only a moment then nodded again. “Yes, ma’am. Understood.”
“You do not know the dangers of this land. If one of us tells you to do something, you do it.”
“Understood. Yes.”
“Good.”
“What did they want?” I asked.
“Initially? They may have aimed for the pack animals. Once they saw you? Slaves.”
“They can carry a full-grown human?”
“Yes,” Chasianna confirmed.
I translated for my staff. “They’re not serious,” Aniyah said.
“I think they are.”
She put on a fierce expression. Hillary, on the other hand, turned to Yrneha and said, “Thank you for keeping me safe. I would have screamed.”
Yrneha patted her cheek.
* * * *
Thankfully, that was the only serious incident over our three weeks of travel. And then we reached Algonae City.
