Suddenly there was a clatter of wood on wood, as the intruder tripped over a bowl and sent it rolling against another. A hiss of indrawn breath followed, then a sigh. Finally Blade heard fumbling motions, and then all at once a dim white fight filled the shelter. Blade sat up and stared at the intruder.
Like most Fak'si women, she was only a little over five feet tall and built on generous lines, to say the least. This was usually obvious even in daylight, since the Fak'si women wore only a knee-length skirt. This lady wore even less-a flower in her hair, a bracelet of grass on one wrist, and a gourd on the other hand. The gourd was filled with something luminous-perhaps a phosphorescent moss-that gave off the white light.
Blade looked at the woman more closely. At first glance the pale light on her blue skin made her look like a long-dead corpse risen from its grave. A second glance showed that she was not only young but quite attractive. Her breasts were high and firm, the large nipples barely visible against the darkness of her skin. Her waist, unthickened by childbearing, flowed down into smooth thighs. Her hair was shorter than usual among Fak'si women, but heavily decorated with bone ornaments. A reddish jewel gleamed just above her left ear. Her skin shone as if it had been oiled, and she smelled faintly of flowers.
At last she giggled and looked down at the floor. Blade realized he'd been staring at her in silence for several minutes. She sat down, folding her legs under her, and Blade laughed.
«All right,» he said. «You know who I am. Who are you, and why are you here?»
The woman laughed. «I am Lokhra. Why I am here-Blade, do you not know the ways of women?»
Blade nodded. «I see. Yes, I know the ways of women. In fact, it is not wise to ask that of a man of the English. He might think it an insult.»
«Good,» said Lokhra. «We hoped the English were that way. The warriors of the Kabi must be lovers of men for three years. We would not have been happy to find you like them.»
«Who is this 'we?'» asked Blade.
«Oh,» said Lokhra. «It is I and the other three women.»
«That doesn't tell me as much as you think,» said Blade. «Remember that I've only been among the Fak'si for two days. Most of that time I spent among the warriors and hunters. So perhaps you should treat me as a child who must be told everything.»
Lokhra wriggled across the floor to Blade and rested one soft-fingered hand between his thighs. «Blade, I do not think you are a child in all things. Or my eyes and hands are telling lies.»
«They are not,» said Blade, putting an arm around Lokhra's shoulders and resting one hand on a breast. «But I would like you to tell me the truth. You and the other three women-who are you?»
«You fought the Horned One and killed it,» she said. «When such a Horned One attacks hunters, some of them always die. The men who saw you fight the Horned One met tonight. They decided that four of them would certainly have died if you did not fight the Horned One.»
«Did they decide which four?» asked Blade.
«No. They only knew that four of them live who would otherwise be dead. Now, when a man of the Fak'si saves another, the man he saves must give him a woman for one night. The men cast the bones, and four of them were chosen to each send you one of his women. I am the first.»
«I see,» said Blade. It seemed a sensible way of showing gratitude and one he wouldn't find it at all hard to accept. While she'd been explaining why she was here, Lokhra's fingers were moving gently but steadily. Blade was finding it harder and harder to keep his mind on what she was telling him or keep his own hands from tightening on her breasts.
Now Lokhra's story was finished, and there was no more reason for Blade to hold back. He raised both hands to her shoulders and turned her until he could kiss her. Apparently kissing wasn't the most common gesture of affection among the Fak'si, because she was clumsy at first. Apparently she also had the right instincts, because the clumsiness didn't last long. Her lips turned warm under Blade's, her tongue crept out to join his, her free hand ran up and down his back. Blade found his breath coming harder, and felt Lokhra's nipples hardening against the palms of his hands.
Blade didn't know what Lokhra might expect, but he knew what he wanted, and also knew that he couldn't wait much longer for it. What Lokhra was doing to him was both marvelous and painful at the same time.
Blade released his grip on the woman, then pressed one hand against her forehead and the other against her stomach. Lokhra went over backward, wriggling sideways so that she lay on the sleeping mat. Her legs spread apart, then rose to lock around Blade.
After the excitement of what had gone before, the actual joining with Lokhra was almost a disappointment for Blade. She didn't carry him to any breathtaking, delirious heights. She didn't rise to any herself. She simply held him against her and within her until his body arched in the final spasm and all his breath went out in a choking cry. She went on holding him with his head nestled between her breasts, although most of his weight must have been on her.
She held him until he found the strength to enter her again. This time her cry echoed his own, and he felt the warm solid flesh under him writhing and twisting wildly. Again he relaxed, head between her breasts and the sound of her racing heart pounding in his ears. Again she held him until he found his strength returning. This time when they were finished he felt much too comfortable to even think of moving.
After a while Lokhra wriggled off the mat and crawled over to the remains of dinner. She returned with a gourd of fruit juice and a platter of sliced fish, then held both out to Blade. He ate and drank to please her, although he was more thirsty than hungry. When he'd finished, he reached for her again. She held him off with one hand while she held a drinking gourd with the other. She drank, and as she drank she seemed to be listening for something in the darkness outside.
Blade was beginning to get annoyed, and he was about to ask her what the devil she was doing when suddenly she jumped up. Stark naked, she walked across the shelter and pulled open the curtain of leaves which served as a door.
«Come in,» she said to the darkness outside. Three shapes moved there. Blade started to rise-then three more women were standing in the doorway. All three of them wore the Fak'si skirt, but before Blade could recover from his surprise they started pulling them off. By the time he'd recovered, the three newcomers were as naked as Lokhra.
Blade was amused at the prospect of having to satisfy three more women tonight. He also found himself looking forward to it. Lokhra was the best-looking of the four women, but the other three were hardly ugly. All were young, well-fleshed, and firm-breasted. From the way they were looking at him, they were also looking forward to the rest of the night.
Blade threw his head back and laughed, until his laughter drowned out the night sounds outside and the four women were laughing with him. Then he stood up and walked over to the first of the three newcomers.
Chapter 6
Blade never could remember much about what happened during the rest of the night. He only knew that when he woke up, it was well after dawn and all four of the women were gone. The mat under him and the floor of the platform were soaked with sweat, and all the leftovers from dinner had vanished.
He suspected that whatever he'd managed to do had been enough, although he never learned any of the details. He only knew that Lokhra grinned openly at him whenever they met, and several of the men who'd seen him fight the Horned One always slapped him on the shoulder and patted his hair. «You have skill with other weapons beside those sticks, yes, Blade?» said one man.