"Ley, stop!" he called out again.
The Prime dragged the Beta forward another step and then stopped, turning her head to look back at him. She looked at his face before dropping her gaze to the hand on her shoulder. "Take your hand off of me!" she snapped.
He snatched his hand back before she could forcibly detach it from his arm. "Ley, listen to me, please," he pleaded.
She had already turned her head and taken another step forward. She stopped and whirled around. "What?" she spat out, putting her hands on her hips.
"Ley, I swear I didn't know," he began, holding his hands to the sides. "There was nothing like this on the other coast." He and Tillek had spent some time on the other coast on a covert reconnaissance mission, before the High Command had decided that the planet wasn't worth the bother of conquest.
Leysen remained impassive, her deep blue eyes as cold as ice.
"Ley..." Raising his arms toward her, he took a step forward. Before he could take another, one hand left her hip and she made a swatting gesture. He retraced the step that he had just taken. "I really didn't know," he continued, lowering his arms. "They never told me."
She snorted. "Because you already have a female?"
"That's what everyone thinks."
She snorted again. "So you don't need to look for another female." Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "I applaud your fidelity." With a toss of her head, she turned and started walking away again, heading across the village toward the room she shared with Velder.
"Ley!" He started after her again. "Ley! Listen, please."
She looked back over her shoulder. "Well, I am not going with that... that slave train... that meat market."
"You don't have to, Ley." Velder trotted to keep up with her long strides.
"That's for sure." She kept walking.
"Ley, will you stop and listen?"
She all but tore the door off its hinges. Before he could follow her inside, he found the door slammed in his face. "Ley!" he called out through the wood. "Leysen!"
There was no answer from within, only the sound of angry footsteps.
"Leysen!"
Finally the door opened, to show him the young Prime, a leather bag slung over one shoulder and a long cloth-wrapped bundle in the other hand. "Get out of my way!" she all but snarled at him.
He remained in her way a moment too long. She placed her free hand in the middle of his broad chest and pushed.
He went sprawling, landing on the ground about eight feet behind where he had just been standing. "Leysen!" he called out yet again.
She ignored his call but didn't ignore him completely. A single bound took her over his prostrate form and five feet beyond. Her knees barely flexing to absorb the impact, she walked away with quick, determined strides.
By the time Velder managed to get back up to his feet, she was halfway across the village. "Ley!" he called, running after her.
She looked back over her shoulder, saw him running, and took off, disappearing around a corner.
He ran after her, but even though the Beta could run faster than any Talisi, it was only a fraction of a Prime's best speed. When Velder reached the corner, he could just make out Leysen's form heading straight for the wall.
A Prime could do more than just run. The wall had been heightened following the latest raid on the village. It was more than high enough to prevent any Talisi from entering, but it could not stop a Prime from exiting. As Velder continued to run, he saw Leysen gather her legs under her and then leap over the wall.
There was no way that the Beta could follow the Prime. But he was not going to turn back. Instead, he turned left and ran to the gate.
With the trading caravan within the gates, there was only a lone sentry on duty at the gate. His job was to watch for any outsiders seeking entry to the village. His job was not to stop people seeking to leave the village. Still, on seeing the warrior running toward him, he stepped up to ask his business, what he intended leaving at this time of night, alone and unarmed.
On Talis, leaving a palisaded village alone and unarmed after dark, the presence of the trading caravan within the walls not withstanding, is not the most logical thing for a man to do. But Talis isn't the only planet in the galaxy where a human male has been known to act with less than perfect logic when a female was involved. Velder barely slowed down, let alone answered the sentry's challenge.
Propelled by the Beta's shove, the sentry found himself on his back. By the time that he was able to pick himself up, all he could see was the lone warrior's back disappearing between the trees lining the road.
Once outside the walls, Velder circled around to approximately where he had seen Leysen go over the wall. "Ley!" he called out into the darkness.
There was no answer.
One of the moons was up, but there was not enough light for him to even attempt to track where she had gone. And even if he could have tracked her, there was no way that he could have kept up.
"Leysen!" he called out again.
There still was no answer.
Velder was alone and unarmed, with no source of light in the night and with absolutely no hope of tracking the Prime. There was only one thing that he could do. He headed off into the trees.
He could see enough to avoid blundering into the trees. He avoided most of the undergrowth, though branches occasionally raked across his chest and face. Protruding roots occasionally tripped him up. Yet he continued on, periodically calling out her name.
A root tripped him up again, spilling him to the ground. He struggled up to his knees. "Leysen!" he called out into the dark.
There was no answer.
Finally, he gave up. If the Prime had wanted to leave him behind, she would be miles away by now. Not even her sensitive ears would hear his cries, even if she wanted to answer them. Rising to his feet, he didn't even bother to brush himself off as he turned back toward Panture and began walking home.
The same sentry was on duty at the gate. Velder brusquely ignored the young warrior's queries as to where he'd been and entered the village, heading across to his living quarters. The quarters that he had shared with the only female Arion on the entire planet.
A single torch lit the corridor. Going to his room, he pushed the door open and went in.
The room seemed empty without her. The bed felt even emptier, when he finally cleaned himself up and burrowed under the covers.
Not that he could sleep.
It didn't matter that Leysen was a Prime. It didn't matter that she'd fought and killed a santha, the deadliest predator on the planet. She was still a female. His female.
No, she wasn't his. That was what had caused the argument in the first place.
Fine. If she wanted to be on her own, let her. She was a Prime, let her take care of herself.
Damn! He pounded the empty bed beside him.
No village on Talis ever was completely asleep at night. Sentries changed shifts. Females would be tending the cooking fires and the stews that were also kept warm. The soft tread of feet walked past Velder's door.
The feet came back and stopped outside his door. Then the door started to swing open.
Velder quietly reached for the sword under his bed.
"Velder?" The voice was soft, tentative.
It was also feminine, familiar. Letting the sword drop, Velder jumped to his feet and went to the door. He stopped when the owner of that voice stepped back into the corridor. "Ley?" he called out softly.
Leysen stood in the soft torchlight, her arms hanging at her sides. "Can I come home, Velder? Please?"
He answered her by closing the short distance between them and enfolding her in his arms. Her own arms --- after first dropping her things just inside the door --- eventually came up and wrapped around him and they embraced for a long minute.
A little gentle pressure --- which she didn't resist --- and he was pulling her into the room. He then lifted her and swung her onto the bed. Again, she offered no resistance.
She made no attempt to hold on to him when he started to straighten up. "Can I come home?" she asked again.
"You're always welcome here with me," he said, bending down to kiss her forehead.
She reached up and redirected his face, meeting his lips with hers.
"Let's just go to sleep," he said when she had released him. "We'll both have forgotten about this in the morning."
No more words were spoken as he helped her to undress. He longed to touch her, to make love to her, to show her how much he loved her. If she had been a Beta or a Talisi, he most definitely would have. A Prime, though...
He got another reminder of that, for underneath her outer garments she was wearing her school uniform. "Ley," he whispered, trying and failing to slip his fingers underneath the sheer fabric, not having the strength to undress a Prime.
She pulled him down onto the bed beside her. "Just hold me," she whispered.
He did, rolling toward her and snuggling up against her slender body.
They were still that way when Velder woke up in the morning, snuggled next to each other, their arms entwined. Not wanting to disturb her, he slowly started to disengage himself from her embrace, trying to slip down and out.
She stirred but didn't open her eyes. "Just hold me," she murmured, echoing her last words from the previous night.
He really didn't have much choice, unless he wanted to awaken her. Even asleep --- especially asleep --- the Prime's slender arms were still too strong. It would take a major effort on his part to free himself, one that would be certain to awaken the female. He snuggled back up to her warm body.
Eventually she wakened. She opened her eyes and blinked several times rapidly. "Velder?" she breathed his name, her voice barely a whisper.
"I'm here, Ley."
"Velder?" she breathed again.
"I'm here, Ley," he repeated, tightening his arms to hold her with all of his Beta strength.
"Last night..."
"It's okay, Ley. You're home now."
"Home..." She held him tight. Tight for him, at any rate, though he knew that she was being careful with her Prime strength, her embrace not much tighter than his own.
She eventually wriggled free just enough to remove her uniform.
They barely emerged from their room in time to catch the tail end of the morning meal.
The trading caravan spent two days in Panture. When it left, the three Arions accompanied it, as did Mai. In fact, Mai had been instrumental in finally convincing Leysen to go. After all, Mai was not going out in search of a mate. She had every intention of remaining with Tillek for the entire circuit.
Mai thought it a great lark. Females did not often get a chance to travel, and her relationship with Tillek had obviously opened her eyes to the world outside of her native village of Panture. Though just how wide the world --- and the universe beyond --- was...
As for the Arions, it was their first opportunity to see the world further south. South, toward Porea.
Of course, it was not all fun. The two females were expected to do their share of the cooking and other household chores while on the road. Not that the warriors were completely idle, either, having to take care of the hurjas carrying the trade goods and their supplies, as well as taking their turns as outriders.
Two days and a night on the road after leaving their previous spot, they entered the final village before the frontier. Their welcome was almost identical to their welcome to the other villages since leaving Panture. Warriors met them well outside the gates to escort them in. Inside the gates, almost the entire village turned out to meet them.
Some of the guards had started from this village. Having completed the circuit, they were now welcomed home by friends and kin. A group of younger warriors stood together, trying to get a glimpse of the incoming females --- the females whose presence Leysen had objected to earlier.
One older warrior seemed to recognize Leysen, immediately coming toward her, a broad smile on the rugged face beneath an almost completely bald dome.
The face was vaguely familiar, though she couldn't immediately put a name to it.
She was spared further embarrassment when he gave his name and greeted her almost as one warrior greeting another. "I didn't know you were coming, but I'd be honored to show you my smithy before the evening meal," he concluded.
Now she remembered Raynek from one of the first visiting groups of smiths brought to Panture to learn the secrets of steelmaking. Not quite sure of the proper protocol, Leysen merely nodded in response.
Velder came up to her, putting a possessive arm around her waist as he greeted Raynek. "We would be honored to visit after I have settled in."
For a brief moment Leysen resented Velder's possessive attitude. But then, they weren't at home any more and the warriors here didn't know of her special position in Panture.
"Yes, of course, Raynek," she said. "As soon as we have settled in." She turned around to unload their things from their hurjas, as Mai was already doing with her things and Tillek's.
Local boys --- warriors in training, under the supervision of a pair of older warriors ---were on hand to take care of the hurjas. Carrying the packs containing their personal belonging, Mai and Leysen --- like good Talisi females --- followed Tillek and Velder as a young female showed them to the quarters that had been prepared for them.
A young warrior greeted Velder and Leysen when they emerged from their room. "Raynek sent me," he said, addressing himself to Velder and all but ignoring Leysen.
Leysen knew that the young male was showing proper Talisi behavior. She didn't like it, but she couldn't blame the lad as he turned to lead the way. Frowning slightly, she followed the two males.
Raynek was there to greet them again outside his smithy. He himself held the door open and ushered his guests inside. Once inside, his demeanor changed completely, much to the surprise of the young apprentice. Now it was Velder's turn to be all but ignored as Raynek showed Leysen what he had done with his smithy.
Raynek really had done a good job when he'd expanded his smithy. It couldn't exactly be called an assembly line, since a smith still had to be responsible for each of his creations from start to finish, but there were stations for four men to be working simultaneously, all set around a common forge. Two of them seemed to be specialized for swords while the other two could be used for anything from other weapons to kitchen utensils. Leysen and Velder had not yet introduced crossbows outside of Panture.
"This is superb!" Leysen danced delightedly from one station to another, examining the layout and the tools, ignoring the efforts of the apprentice trying to prevent the female from touching the tools for the making of weapons. Briefly forgetting herself, Leysen picked up an anvil and held it to one side in order to see behind it.
Gasps from the two local males brought her up short. She froze, the anvil held in one dainty feminine hand.
Velder quickly moved in to cover her gaffe, taking the anvil from her. Even with his Arion strength, it required both of his hands to take what the Prime easily held in one hand.
The remainder of the visit went without incident, though Leysen and Raynek could have spent the rest of the day and evening talking shop, only the evening meal finally dragging them away from the smithy.
Leysen and Mai were relegated to sitting with the other females. The entertainment was largely familiar, Panture and the other villages they had passed through having added little to the news of the world. There certainly was no mention of a female smith and the new and superior weapons she had made in Panture.
Leysen was ready to retire for the night as soon as the meal was done. It would feel good to sleep in a bed instead of on the ground. Leaving the other females, she went to collect Velder.
Velder and Tillek were with a group of local warriors, discussing the current situation on the frontier. Leysen came and stood behind Velder, waiting to be acknowledged.
Tillek merely gave her a nod, listening to a local describing a recent raid. Velder turned his head and saw her, taking her hand and placing it on his shoulder.
Leaning close, Leysen whispered into Velder's ear.
"In a moment," he replied, patting her hand while continuing to listen to the story.
There was no empty place for her to sit, even if it had been permitted for a female to sit with the warriors. Leysen had no choice but to continue to stand behind Velder.
Another local embellished some details regarding the recent raid. There was some laughter when another warrior pointed out that the speaker hadn't participated in that particular portion of the story.
Resisting the urge to pull him out of his seat, Leysen leaned over again to whisper into Velder's ear.
Turning his head, he patted her hand again and then removed it from his shoulder. "Why don't you go wait in our room? I'll join you shortly." Without waiting for her answer, he turned back and returned his attention to the story.
Leysen stood still for a moment, then turned and walked away. Just who did he think he was?
Just who the Stars did he think she was?
So what if he was older and male, while she was younger and female. She was a Prime --- and the daughter of a general --- while he was only a Beta. He should be taking orders from her, not the other way around. She stalked out of the dining room, barely avoiding a collision with a young female washing a table.
Sending her to wait in their assigned room! Well, that was one thing she most certainly would not do. If he was expecting her to keep the bed warm for him, hah! He had another think coming. Leaving the common area, she deliberately turned away from the sleeping quarters. If Velder wanted her, then he could very well come looking for her.
The direction that she had chosen led to the village's main gate. The sentries gave her the usual once-over, but otherwise didn't impede her exit. After all, their main function was to watch for people trying to come in, not those going out. Though unaccompanied females seldom left the village at night.
Not having any particular destination in mind, she took the branch of the road heading toward the shore. She started out at a walk, but was jogging at better than thirty miles per hour when she emerged from the trees at the edge of the beach.
There had been children scampering about the sand when she had first seen the beach on their arrival. At this late hour, not too surprisingly, the beach was completely deserted. The solitude suited her just fine. Removing her sandals and putting them a pocket, she walked down to the water's edge and further, just enough to get her ankles wet. Turning to the left, she walked parallel to the water's edge, enjoying the waves lapping at her ankles.
All too soon, she was at the end of the beach. Stopping, she took a look around. She absentmindedly rubbed the bridge of her nose as she considered her options.
She could turn around and return the way she'd just come. That would just take her back to the village.
Ahead, the high hills came right down to the water's edge, forming a rocky headland that cut off this beach from whatever lay on the other side. Waves crashed against the jumble of rocks at its base. Anybody less than an Arion Prime would consider the way impassable.
She looked back the way she had come, back toward the village. And Velder. She knew what he wanted her to do.
No, she wasn't ready to return to that. She resumed walking in her original direction.
A path that would have been impassable to a Talisi --- or an Arion Beta --- presented no obstacles to the young Arion Prime. Leysen walked along the base of the rocky headland, heedless of the sharp rocks that would have cut a Talisi's unprotected feet to ribbons, occasionally putting out a hand to steady herself on the water-slicked rocks.
It wasn't long before she found herself on the other side. The beach here was even more lonely than the other one, if that was possible.
She'd been trying not to think about Velder as she walked. Naturally, trying not to think about him had kept him at the forefront of her thoughts. Furthermore, the waves lapping at her ankles had reminded her of Velder massaging her legs after their last flight.
She finally gave in to the temptation. Slipping out of her garments and tossing them onto the sand, she turned and waded out deeper. A couple of more strides and the water was deep enough for swimming. Within moments, her powerful strokes had carried her out nearly a thousand yards. There, she rolled onto her back and drifted, letting the waves caress her.
The water felt good, washing over her, reminding her of Velder's light caresses, washing away some of her anger at him. Or was it her anger at herself for fighting with Velder?
She really shouldn't be fighting with him. After all, he along with Tillek were the only other Arions on this whole planet. If the three of them couldn't stick together, then... Still, who was he to give orders to her? A Beta giving orders to a Prime?
Turning around, she began kicking her way back to shore. When her head touched the sand, she righted herself and waded back onto the beach. One hand came up her flank, brushing away some of the water. The hand came up a little higher and cupped a breast. Combining with the earlier caresses of the waves, she felt a tingling sensation spreading along her entire body.
She wanted Velder. She wanted a male. Should she go back to their assigned room and wait for him, as he had directed?
An obstinate corner of her mind refused to do his bidding. That corner of her mind eventually won her inner debate, setting her body down on the cool sand and running her hands along her body.
It wasn't as if Velder could fully satisfy her, that corner of her mind rationalized. As delightful as he was to be with --- most of the time, anyway --- he was still just a Beta. Even when she wore both of her gold chains, he still couldn't match her strength. There were times when she wanted more, needed more.
And this was one of them. Cupping her breasts, she squeezed them much harder than Velder ever could, hard enough to crush even her best steel.
Making his way down the narrow trail, Reglin stopped and leaned against the last tree to catch his breath and to look out over the water. The light from the moons made the waves appear to shimmer and glow as they broke upon the sand.
He often came to this beach to get away from it all. Unlike the beach immediately by the village where the children played, almost no one ever came here.
Sometimes he'd splash about for a while and then dry out on the sand. Sometimes he'd just sun himself. Nobody ever bothered him here; it was the only place he could be truly alone.
He wasn't planning to go out into the water tonight, however. He continued to lean against the tree as he thought back on the events of that day.
He had been at the gate on sentry duty when the trading party had come in shortly after noon. Reglin had nothing to do with it, being too young to sit in on council meetings with outsiders.
And he was glad that he hadn't had to. He really didn't care about boring trade arrangements; his village got all the food it needed from its fields and from the sea. And as for other things, he wanted to go on raids, taking what he wanted rather than trading for them. Even though he hadn't been on a raid himself, he had heard plenty of stories from the older warriors who had. He was hoping that once the trading season --- and its accompanying truce --- was over, he would be included on such a raid. He had dreams of capturing some females and bringing them back.
Yes, that would be just the thing to do. Perhaps a female from one of the inland villages, one who was not as familiar with life on the ocean. He'd bring her down to this beach, and...
Lost in his dreams, it took him a while to realize that he was not dreaming the movement at the water's edge.
He couldn't believe his eyes at first. There really was someone coming out of the water toward the beach. That was unusual enough --- the currents created tricky undertows there --- but it was nothing compared to his next discovery. The person was a female, and she was walking as if the sharp, slippery rocks were presenting no obstacles to her progress.
In the low light, he couldn't immediately recognize her, but she seemed to be quite attractive.
Even as he continued to stare at her, she walked up onto the beach. To his surprise, he now saw that she was completely naked. Even more to his surprise --- and pleasure --- she lay down on the sand and began playing with herself.
He couldn't stop himself getting a little closer to examine her in greater detail. She had magnificent coal-black shoulder-length hair. Her eyes were the clearest, brightest blue he had ever seen, seeming to glow with their own light. The rest of her face was a vision in its perfection, her nose ideal, her lips full, red and beautifully shaped. In her excitement, her mouth was slightly open, revealing two rows of flawless regular gleaming teeth.
But her face had to take a back seat to the body. Her legs, so long and slender, so shapely. Her hips, straight from his happiest dreams. Her washboard stomach so flat, her navel so alluring. There was not the merest hint of a blemish anywhere on her silky, toned flesh. But what caught his attention and held it like a prisoner, were her breasts. He'd never seen a pair this large and round that were as firm as these appeared to be. She was lying on her back and yet they still stood proud on her chest. Each boasted a big, triumphant pink nipple at its center, pointed straight at the sky. Every little thing about the girl was utterly, utterly magnificent. He could feel his body responding to the remarkable vision in front on him.
Who was she? Forcing himself to tear his eyes away from her body, he looked back at her face.
Was she one of the females who had come with the trading party? He'd only had a passing glance at them as they came in, so he couldn't be sure. But a female this beautiful... if he'd seen her, surely he'd remember her?
Though in all fairness, she wouldn't have been completely naked then.
Meanwhile, Leysen was so involved in her private dreams that she did not even notice the young Talisi warrior's presence. Suddenly though, she became aware that she was no longer alone. She stopped her frantic fingering and looked up.
She immediately saw the young warrior's muscular chest and arms.
Her frustration was mounting. It had been nearly a week since Daffyd had departed to continue his rounds, and she was left with only the Talisi to keep her company. If it could be called that. The big warrior beneath her was fading, and fading fast, only the gentle pressure of her sex keeping him hard. The only thing keeping his right arm from falling to his side like the left was her left hand pressing his hand gently against her left breast.
Letting out a low sigh, Tani'a Veloor increased the pressure of her right hand against her right breast, caressing her mound with more than enough pressure to crush granite. At the same time, her legs increased the pace of their rhythmic pumping.
The rustle of sound as something moved caught her attention. Turning her head, she saw that one of the other two warriors had woken up. Dropping the almost useless hand at her breast, she reached her left hand toward him.
Seeing his goddess summoning him, he pulled himself toward her, using his arms as much as his legs to move his exhausted body along the floor. Coming closer, he stretched a hand toward hers.
There was no break in the rhythmic motion of her legs as she took his hand and pulled him to her, her right hand leaving her breast just long enough to rub his face over her left breast before positioning the big male body so that he could clamp his mouth over her left nipple. Then, tucking him in under her left arm, she resumed caressing her right breast, her slender fingers applying more than a thousand times the force against the soft mound as his two big hands were applying against the other.
Fueled by the feeble efforts of the two Talisi, Tani'a finally felt the initial stirrings of her orgasm. Her legs further increased the pace, the big body against her side being tossed around as if it was no more than a light towel.
The orgasm broke over her, and yet she continued moving, willing herself toward a second --- and higher --- peak, the muscles of her sex continuing to keep the male under her erect. The warrior at her breast clung to her with all of his strength, yet it was her slender arm that was keeping him from being flung across the room.
Her delicate feminine fingers continued to increase the force of their caresses until, relaxing her inner muscles to allow him his release, she finally reached her second peak. Uttering a low moan as her legs slowed and finally stopped, she pulled the second warrior from her breast, lifting him up until she could press her lips against his.
She rose off the warrior underneath her, still holding the second one as if he was weightless. He still hadn't fully recovered from his earlier exertions --- the frail Talisi bodies simply didn't have the stamina of a Velorian messenger --- but he would have to do.
Rising to her full height, she spread her legs and manuevered the big male between them. Fully relaxing her inner muscles, she cupped one of his buttocks and thrust him into her. Being careful not to tighten herself too much around his fragile organ, she began raising and lowering him, using his entire body as a huge dildo. Her other hand moved to his back, gently pressing his chest against her breasts. Primed as she was from her earlier efforts, it wasn't long before her entire body was shaking from her impending climax.
The warrior was having difficulty breathing, his broad muscular chest unable to expand against her soft feminine breasts. She eased the pressure slightly before dropping him onto the cushions as soon as her climax hit.
Now all three of tonight's worshippers were completely spent, leaving her still hungry for more.
Just as she had been every night since Daffyd had gone on to his next stop. To the next lonely Planetary Protector.
It was like this every time. As nice as his visits were, they were all short and too infrequent. Why couldn't the Council station more than one person on the planet?
