Sex, in fact, was mainly what the people of Erspia-2 occupied themselves with. Everyone was almost permanently dusted with golden pollen, except early in the morning when a bath in fresh water was the custom.
Laedo found it amusing to see how the orchids had incorporated human sexuality into their reproductive function. There were children on Erspia-2 also, but the birthrate was clearly very low. He had seen only three or four youngsters, while he had encountered hundreds of adults.
And not one of them but was superb from the physical point of view. Laedo had indulged himself to excess, for the people here were wholly promiscuous and never refused an offer of love play. But he never went to an orchid with a native woman if Histrina was around. Although she herself coupled quite openly with practically every man she met, she became insanely jealous whenever Laedo showed an interest in anyone but her.
Histrina.
Histrina was his second problem.
Knowing that she would eventually find an opportunity to get the gun back off him, he had hidden it in the station along with the cavorite. But he felt uneasy whenever she was near. He knew she wasn’t sane, and that she would do anything which, in her imprinted condition of comic-book evil, seemed to her wicked.
She would cheat, lie, steal, injure and murder. He felt, however, that he was safe from her violence for the time being. She needed him, or thought she did.
He was hoping that sating herself in fornication, which she also believed was unforgivably wicked, would keep her busy for the time being. But what was he going to do with her in the long run?
The simplest course seemed to be to leave her behind on Erspia-2. After all, she was having a good time.
But to some extent he was responsible for her condition. Although he had rescued her from Hoggora’s camp, it was he who had flown her through the Ahrimanic beam at full intensity. Indeed, by bringing her aboard at all, he had wilfully taken her into his charge.
He could just imagine what his karmayoga analyst would say on hearing that he had abandoned his protegé. “This is bad, Laedo,” he would say, shaking his head. “You’re going to suffer agonies of remorse for this. You can expect to pay for it in other ways, too, through events in later life. You took on a load of bad karma when you ditched that poor girl.”
No, she had to go with him. It was his duty to find some therapy that could straighten out that twisted mind of hers.
An idea occurred to him. What if he were to subject her to the Ormazdian beam at full intensity? Might that wipe out the Ahrimanic influence? It would be easy to switch the beam back on again and inveigle Histrina into it.
As a solution it was too clumsy, he decided. He wasn’t a therapist, and the ploy might do more damage than good. Besides, he wasn’t sure a Histrina oozing Ormazdian goodness wouldn’t be even more insufferable than the one he had now.
He rose, stretched and sighed, partly with happiness at the sight of his surroundings and partly from a feeling of resignation at the thought or the task ahead. Sorting out the station’s command system was going to be tricky.
Crossing the meadow, he entered the orchid forest, making for the globe of the station which bulked over the tips of the giant flowers, with the up-pointed cargo ship attached. Once in the forest he passed a group of Erspians who were lounging on the grass, chatting and laughing in silvery, musical voices.
Receiving winsome smiles, he smiled back and went on.
Despite the planetoid’s other attractions, if he were to stay here he would get pretty short of intelligent conversation after a while, he told himself. These people just didn’t have developed minds. There was nothing to make them extend themselves.
A little further, and he come to the clearing where the station rested. He was about to mount the steep stairway to the hatch when he saw a woman standing under one of the nearest orchids. She was beckoning to him.
He peered. Even by Erspian standards, she was stunning. Her skin seemed to glow with health, a pink colour. Her golden hair shone; her mouth was vivacious and red.
He moved a little closer, and saw that there was no pollen on her. She hadn’t had sex today yet. She was, quite obviously, eager for it.
Laedo licked his lips. He ought to be getting on with the job he had set himself. But by the habits of this world, one didn’t refuse… besides, he hadn’t had sex today himself yet.
And she was something he just couldn’t pass up.
As he nodded and came up to her she smiled, her eyes sparkling. She turned and stepped into the jungle.
He had expected her to choose a nearby orchid but no, she went deeper into the forest, stepping soundlessly on the soft pile underfoot. He caught up with her and tried to take her hand. Her skin was cool; but she drew the hand away and kept her distance. Several times he spoke to her but she made no reply, merely gave him a sidelong glance and a heart-stirring smile of promise.
Pleasurably aware of the female motions of her rolling hips as she walked, he allowed her to lead him.
The jungle surrounded them, the variegated shapes of the towering orchids offering endless vistas, the entrancing colours filtering the sunlight and filling the air with their hues.
He was unsure how long they walked; perhaps fifteen minutes. But suddenly she stopped and turned to him.
He was surprised that she still had not selected an orchid. He had thought to himself that perhaps she knew of a special one and that he was in for a rare treat. Instead she reached out her arms for him, and to his puzzlement seemed to want to make love on the ground.
Her lily-cool skin touched him; her arms went around his neck. She sank down, drawing him with her.
Her arms tightened more firmly around his neck. Her legs went around his upper thighs and clamped there.
And then the nightmare unfolded. The girl’s skin was not human skin. Her flesh was not human flesh. It was composed of pulpy vegetable matter, and now it split down the middle, both body and head, to form a pod into which her arms and legs proceeded to press him.
Inside the pod he glimpsed pale finger-like extrusions, limp fronds, lumpy transparent growths which reminded him of jellyfish. He felt a stinging sensation as some of these fingers touched his skin. He yelled in fear and tried to push himself away, but the arms and legs were too strong; they were steadily squeezing him deeper into the pod, which with a creaking sound adjusted and extended itself to accommodate him. With a shock of panic he realized that it meant to close up again with him inside—after which he would no doubt be slowly digested.
He exerted himself to prise apart the lips of the almost imperceptibly closing pod. It was like trying to move an oak tree. Of course! he thought with bitter despair. Its only prey were human beings—naturally it was stronger than they were! His struggles became desperate and violent. He was gasping with fright.
Then he heard a hiss and felt a wave of heated air by his cheek. The head section of the pod blackened, shrivelled and peeled back. Suddenly the whole thing sprang open, pod agape, arms and legs akimbo.
He sprang to his feet, breathing heavily. His rescuer was Histrina. She had crept up unseen, his gun in her hand. A grimace of delight was on her features as, now, she directed the beam of the gun at the pod again, playing it up and down the horrible predator. Blackened and crackling, it squirmed and popped. It banged and hissed as fluid sacs within it exploded. Then it was a stinking mass which did no more than curl and uncurl slightly, giving off wisps of black smoke.
How had she got the gun back? He thought he had it well hidden.
Clever Histrina. She had done it again.