Locum Tenens 04

~~~ Chapter Notes ~~~

Loki and Willa have permanently dealt with the thugs that were harassing the orphans. All chapters in this tale are complete and have been submitted. Hopefully, the kind, gracious, smartly-attired, and gorgeous admins will release a new episode every day or so.

~~~ Dora's Orphanage ~~~

The room was still filled with the sounds of soft snoring when I woke up. I opened my eyes to see Dora looking at me. I turned my head to see that Willa was awake as well.

"Breakfast?" I asked with a wink.

"Lecher..," Dora accused, grinning.

I gave both women a kiss and we quietly got up - being careful not to wake the little cherubs that shared Dora's bedroom. We got dressed and I headed out to the back yard to take a leak. I washed my hands and headed back inside.

Zima was up. I gave her a side-hug and got punched by Willa as the young girl blushed.

"Good morning, little sister," I told her.

"Good morning, master Loki," she replied.

We quickly got busy, getting the morning meal prepared. I was set to work cutting strips of meat from a familiar-looking ham hock. Zima ferried the meat to the cast-iron skillet to be browned by Willa as Dora worked on some kind of porridge.

"Take the weapons with you," Dora said, as we worked. "I've no use for those and they'll just raise questions if anybody comes looking for the missing items. I can explain away the blankets, platters, and other things."

"You gave her the coins?" I asked Willa.

"She did," Dora answered. "They're stored in the lockbox. You really shouldn't have."

"He really should," Willa told her. "You're doing a good work here. You need coins."

"I wouldn't need so much coin if... but you've solved that problem too," she said.

"We'll be back to check on you," Willa promised her, pinching her on the butt.

Zima giggled.

"There's no way to get word to us but we'll stop now and then to make sure you girls are okay," the thief told the woman.

"I'd appreciate that," Dora told her, looking deep into her eyes.

"You're not alone, sister," Willa said.

"That... That means more than you know," she answered.

"I know what it's like to be alone," Willa told her, "to have no one to depend on but yourself - only I didn't have all of these brats to tend to..."

"Hey!" Zima objected.

She squeaked when Willa pinched her on the butt and giggled.

Zima's eyes shot to mine and she blushed.

I raised my hands in surrender.

"I'm behaving, little sister," I told her.

She shook her head at me and giggled - and then spun and jammed her fingers into Willa's ribs - eliciting a shriek from the woman. I laughed as the two tussled.

"Not in here!" Dora yelled.

"Yes, Mother," the pair said at the same time, looking at one another, and then giggling.

I couldn't keep from laughing at them. Dora rounded on me and I quickly escaped to the common room. I plopped onto the couch and was quickly buried under a litter of tiny kittens. Alia claimed my lap but several of the other smallest orphans clung to my sides and shoulders.

"A story...," they begged.

"Did you even hear the end of the last?" I asked them.

"Again then!" they cheered.

I gave them an edited-for-time version of the story I'd told the previous night and finished up just as Dora called for them (and me) to head to the table.

Dora asked me to offer the prayer.

"All-Father," I said to the ceiling. "Keep your eyes on these little ones. May their hearts always be full of love and their tummies always full of yummy food."

"Yes!" Alia cheered, pumping her fist.

Willa and Dora laughed.

We started passing bowls to the left and soon everyone had a bowl of porridge and a couple strips of ham.

The little girl to my right tugged on my sleeve. I turned to look at her.

"Thank you for the ham," she said sweetly.

I tousled her hair and kissed her on the forehead.

"No problem, little sister," I said.

The adorable little cherub turned from me to look at Alia - and stuck out her tongue. Alia made to get out of her chair and I started to intervene but Dora was faster.

"Unless you want extra chores," she said, "you two had better knock it off."

"Yes, Mother," the two chorused.

I smothered a laugh and Willa slugged me in the shoulder.

After the meal, the clean-up crew started their work and the rest of the girls were dismissed to the back yard - with a reminder to make sure their beds were made.

Dora slipped outside with us to say good-bye. I got a hug and a kiss. I squeezed her ass while she kissed me. Willa got a hug and a quick peck on the lips.

"Thank you both so much...," she said.

"We'll drop by now and then," Willa told her. "Take care of yourself until we can come back to take care of you."

Dora blushed and giggled.

I suddenly realized that there might have been more to that phrase than I had first considered. I was still thinking about it when the door closed and Willa squeezed my dick.

"Come on, handsome," she said. "What's next on your agenda?"

"Exploring...," I replied. "If I run into a water-mage named Monika, I'm supposed to tell her that I healed Valeri's hand.

"I think I know where to find Monika," Willa said.

"Lead on...," I told her, hugging her from the side.

She took my hand and we headed towards the main thoroughfare.

A few blocks later, we passed the fire mage and I bid him good morning. He smiled and returned my greeting.

We turned south on the main road and I said, "This looks familiar..."

Willa laughed and bumped her shoulder against mine.

We passed the street where I had turned off to corral the sneak-thief the previous morning - and then continued along the main road. We bought a couple rat-skewers from the food-cart and were currently working on our second breakfast.

We came to the street where we'd taken a bath in the backyard the previous day and stopped to reclaim our now-dry clothes. After that, we returned to the main thoroughfare again.

We traveled probably another mile before we came to a market. Willa suggested trying to pawn the weapons that we had acquired. She said that we could have sold them to a weapons-maker but the man might have recognized the pieces and she wanted to avoid any accusations. She explained that the traders in the marketplace were usually traveling merchants and were more likely to buy without asking too many questions.

We found a guy that Willa recognized as being one of the larger operators. Her logic with choosing him was that he'd move more product and be willing to offer something closer to the true value of what we were selling - assuming that he could turn around and sell it quickly and not get stuck with it.

As he quoted what he was offering for each piece, I caught Willa nodding. I added the knife from the woman as well as a couple other blades that I'd picked up when I saved Nella.

I ended up with less money than I had passed along to Dora the previous day - but I was confident that my new fistful of coins would be more than enough to keep Willa and me supplied with rat-skewers.

As soon as my coins were tucked away, she dragged me off to a vendor who had sweet rolls. I bought one for each of us. They were so sweet that my teeth ached. I doubted that they had discovered granulated sugar in this world but - whatever they had used to make the icing - it was amazing. There was a dollop of goo in the corner of Willa's mouth and I lapped it up. She giggled and shoved me.

"How much does one of those bracelets cost?" I asked her.

I was tired of fighting with my pack and was hoping to pick up a magical storage-device.

"A lot more than you have...," she said matter-of-factly.

"I'll save my coins then," I told her.

She gave me a serious look and then nodded. I stole a quick kiss before she could defend herself - and then ran away before she could retaliate. She caught up with me and grabbed my hand to hold. We headed back for the main road and turned north again.

We traveled for another hour or so and the homes were getting nicer and nicer. The road was still just packed dirt, though. I wondered just how big this place was.

"Way! Make way! Any healers?"

I turned to see what the commotion was about and saw another palanquin. The sides were open on this one and it had even more guards than the last one. I heard Willa gasp and she stepped back, releasing my hand. She pushed me forward.

"Healer here!" she yelled.

She shoved me and I stumbled into the woman beside and in front of me.

"Healer here!" the woman shouted, taking up Willa's cry and pushing my arm into the air. "Healer!"

A burly guard rushed at me. He was massive. I gulped and froze.

"Healer?" he asked.

The only thing that allowed me the where-with-all to nod was that he had sheathed his heavy sword as he strode towards me and the old woman who was holding my arm.

"It's the prince...," the woman whispered almost reverently. "How was he hurt?"

The guard flashed a scowl at her that immediately quieted her. He grabbed my arm and hurried me forward. The young man in the carriage was bleeding from multiple wounds. One on his neck looked infected. A guard was squeezing the injured person's bicep. Blood streamed from between the big man's fingers at an alarming rate.

I pulled away from the grasp of my escort and hurried forward. The one holding the man's bicep glared at me.

"Don't do anything stupid. Heal him if you can. Fail and I will cut you down where you stand."

I gulped and nodded and reached to take hold of the limp hand that was the closest part of the young man that I could touch.

I began trading my own health to him - in exchange for his wounds - and gritted my teeth against the surge of pain. It was too much. I raised my face to the heavens above and screamed - even as the young man's body was restored. I was so overwhelmed that I had neglected to send the injuries into a pustule. I felt wounds forming all across my body. Even as I continued to scream, I began redirecting the injuries and wounds into a new pustule. Without looking I knew that it was bigger than any I had created before.

Just as I felt my work finish, the world tilted - and the blackness invaded. I felt my body hit the hard-packed surface of the roadway. I knew nothing more after that.

When I came to again, I was being jostled. I was bent at the waist - my head hanging down and bouncing against something. I opened my eyes to find my vision filled with the muscled posterior of one of the burly guards.

"I think I can walk," I croaked.

"I'll carry you," he said. "The king will want to see you."

"With all due respect," I replied. "Your ass is not that nice to look at."

He laughed.

"Are you sure you can walk?"

"I'd rather struggle to walk than have my guts bouncing up and down on your shoulder as I fight to breathe and try to keep from groping your butt."

He laughed again. He paused only for a moment and set me on my feet. He grabbed my shoulder and guided me along beside him. It was not an invitation. I was going with him whether I wanted to or not. Their pace was less than a jog but we were moving right along.

"How long was I out?" I asked him.

"Maybe five minutes...," he replied. "We've traveled almost a half-mile."

I nodded. We were moving right along if we were doing 10-minute miles.

"How's the patient?" I asked.

"I'm feeling much better now, thank you," a male voice said.

I glanced to my right, back a few paces, and saw that the young man in the palanquin was sitting up. He was still wearing his blood-stained clothes with lots of tears and cuts in them - but he had a smile on his face.

"They told me that you screamed when you healed me," he said.

"I heal by taking the sickness or injuries into myself," I explained.

His eyes traveled up and down my body.

I touched the large pustule on my collarbone and said, "I can store them for later but I still feel some of the pain as I trade my health for theirs."

"Interesting," he said. "What do you mean 'for later'?"

"Can I plead the 5th on that?"

"The fifth?" he asked.

"It means that I will likely incriminate myself by answering your question and that seems like a bad idea," I told him.

He laughed and suggested, "Just tell me enough to pass the knowledge without admitting that you've committed a crime."

"Well," I said, "the last ones I killed..."

He laughed and shook his head.

"They were preying on orphans and their caretaker. I didn't care for their schemes. I stabbed myself repeatedly and stored each of the injuries. When I came to their hideout, I transferred those injuries to them - killing almost a dozen of them in the process. If that's a crime, then I stand before you accused by my own words..."

He looked at me - wide-eyed - and shook his head in disbelief.

"I sense no falsehood," he said. "If those men did as you say, no court would charge you - at least not publicly - the citizens would riot."

I simply nodded - and continued to hurry along beside my enormous companion.

"Allow him to walk beside me," the young man told the guard.

The guard nodded and released his grip on my shoulder. The young man motioned for me to move closer.

"Could you show me how you do it?" he asked. "I have to admit that I am most curious."

"Tell your guards that I'm going to pull my dagger - or would you rather do it yourself?"

"I am beyond intrigued and you are right to guess that my guards would react poorly. I have a dagger. Where should I stab you?"

"I've grown rather used to being stabbed in the heart," I told him. "Plunge the blade home and then pull it out and I'll turn the injury into a pustule or goiter."

"You're sure?" he asked.

"I might scream, but I'll be fine," I told him.

"Ready?" he asked, holding the blade.

"Go ahead," I said, pivoting to face him while still walking.

He stabbed me in the heart, watching my face.

"Pull it free, if you would...," I said.

"Frig! Sorry!" he gasped.

"It's alright," I replied.

I tugged my collar down so that he could watch the wound close. I pointed to the pustule as it grew from my collarbone, joining a few others that were already there.

"Amazing!" he exclaimed. "Those others are stored injuries as well?"

"Yes."

"You didn't scream."

"I'm getting pretty good at that specific injury. I nearly lost my mind when I stabbed myself in the stomach. It was way worse than stabbing myself in the throat."

"Gods above!" the young man gasped, "and you can visit those things on your foes?"

I nodded and said, "I pull off the pustule and throw it at my enemy. When it strikes them, the injuries appear on their body. If the injury is a missing foot, their appendage just fades away - leaving the open wound and jagged bone - whatever it was that I stored away."

"Remarkable!" the young man said. He looked up. "We're almost there. Stay close now. Father will want to talk to you."

We passed through a gate in a tall stone wall. It had an iron portcullis that could be lowered to close off entry. We crossed a huge grassy courtyard and approached the keep. When we arrived, the young man was helped to climb down from the palanquin. A pair of guards grabbed me by the biceps and my toes barely touched the cobblestone ground as we made our way through the giant doors into the massive structure. Behind us, four more guards carried a stretcher with a huge man strapped to it.

As we stepped into the building, my staff, pack, and weapons were removed. The young man told the person who took them to keep track of my items and the man nodded.

The young man that I had healed took the lead. He strode towards the other end of the huge receiving room. The guards that had preceded him peeled off to wait by the door. The two who escorted me had given up their weapons as well. As our small procession moved forward, I noticed that only the prince still had his blade.

Prince. That was what someone had called him. I briefly thought that it was Willa. Where had she disappeared to in the chaos?

The prince strode towards the raised dais - at the top of a half-dozen steps - the elevated position giving the monarch a full view of the goings-on in the massive place.

The prince turned and looked at me.

"One moment, please," he said, motioning to the right.

The guards moved me a few paces out of the way. Left to my own devices, I quickly snuck a drink from my waterskin and searched through my pack until I found another crumbling biscuit to chew on.

"I heard that you were injured, my son," the man on the throne declared.

"A powerful healer intervened, father," the son replied. "I have a prisoner for you."

"Who?" the ruler inquired.

"I give you the Beast of Rivergorge, my liege," the young man said. "He nearly succeeded in killing me but I triumphed. I might not have lived to deliver him to you without the assistance of the strangest healer that I have ever met. First things first, the Beast is mortally wounded. I believe we can extract information from him - but I wanted to ask for your permission to have the healer attend him."

"Granted," the monarch said.

The prince hurried to me.

"Your name.."

"Loki, my lord," I said, lowering my eyes in deference.

He grabbed my shoulder and hurried me forward. He motioned for the guards holding the stretcher to advance to where we stood.

"Father, this is Loki - the man who healed me. He heals by taking the wounds into his own body. He may cry out as he works but you'll want to see this with your own eyes."

The king stood and glanced to his left and right.

"Attend me," he told his guards.

He and two massive warriors descended the stairs to the main floor.

The prince brought me to the side of the stretcher. He spoke loudly enough for his father to hear his words.

"Can you take the wounds first into your body - to show the king what you do - before you store them away for later?"

"Yes, my liege," I answered.

He stepped back and motioned for me to proceed.

"Guards, stand ready," he warned them. "When the healer is finished, the Beast will regain his health and may fight you."

The king's guards stepped slightly in front of him. The captain motioned for four others to join them and those quickly hurried to join the king's entourage.

I waited for everyone to settle into place. The king's guards had their hands on the hilts of their weapons.

"Alright, then," I said. "Here we go. If I pass out, just move me out of the way, if you please. I'll recover shortly."

I glanced at the prince and he nodded.

I laid my hands on the bare forearm of the massive brute that was lashed to the stretcher. I poured my magic into the man and began taking his injuries into my body. I was going to do a double-hop this time - to show off for the king - and I already knew this was going to suck ass.

The pain was beyond anything I'd ever felt. It wasn't worse than the rest - just way more. This motherfucker had taken a ton of damage before he had succumbed. I raised my face to the ceiling, feeling eyes follow my own. I fought to hold the pain in - but there was no way. I screamed - and heard it echo from the stone walls and reverberate back at me. I was still screaming when the Beast was healed.

There were thousands of cuts all across my body. All of them bled freely. Some were stinging cuts but most were deep - spearing into organs that didn't appreciate being turned into pincushions. I saw both the king and the prince staring at me with their jaws hanging to their chests. Most of the guards were looking at me as well.

I heard staves snapping and cloth tearing. A massive fist wrapped around my neck. I glanced to my left to see the Beast standing up. His arm flexed. He was preparing to throw me aside so that he could tackle the king's guards. They had just realized that the prisoner was free and were still out of position to protect their king.

I reached up, grabbed at the wrist of the hand that held my life in its grip - and I returned the huge fucker's injuries back to him in the blink of an eye. He roared with pain and defiance. He staggered but stayed standing. I quickly went through my collection of pustules. I gave him a torn larynx and then a knife-wound that pierced his heart.

He dropped to his knees. I wriggled free of his grasp and placed myself between the monster and the king. I shoved him backwards and he toppled to the floor.

I turned and faced the king.

"He will die soon," I said. "Should I try to save him again?"

"Can you disable him?" the king asked.

"I've never tried that before," I admitted. "I can attempt it but the guards need to be ready to intervene. I will likely pass out this time."

"Do as he says," the king ordered his guards.

I knelt at the giant's feet and waited for the guards to get into place. The captain nodded to me when they were ready.

"Here goes nothing...," I said.

I grabbed the Beast's ankle and closed my eyes. I sent my magic inside.

I took the damage from the heart, the throat, and the internal organs. I left the wounds in his arms and legs. As I felt him begin to stir, I tried something new. I took my exhaustion and pain, and traded it for his health and vigor. I felt him tense and then pass out - just before I fell on my ass - at the same time as a new pustule appeared on my collarbone.

Someone knelt beside me. I opened my eyes. It was the prince.

"You alright there, Loki?" he asked, grinning.

"I could use a mug of clean, cool water and some food," I told him. "I'm a little tired."

He stood and hurried to one of the attendants that flanked the room. The young man sprinted off like his ass was on fire. The prince spoke to another and he raced towards a stack of chairs that were tucked into an alcove. That young man brought the seat and placed it where the prince pointed.

The prince came and helped me up. He guided me to the chair and got me seated.

"Food is coming," he informed me.

He returned to the collection of guards.

"Father," he said. "I suggest we move the Beast to our most secure cell before he recovers from his injuries."

The king looked over at me and then at his son.

"As you suggested," he told the young man, "that was most enlightening." He turned to the man beside him and said, "Captain."

"My lord?"

"See that our brutish guest is given our finest room," he told the man.

"Yes, my lord. Might I suggest double the normal guard?"

"Do as you see fit," the king replied. "If he gives you trouble, kill him. If we can get some useful information from him before he expires, that would be to our advantage."

"It will be done," the man declared.

The king looked at me.

"Do you have a moment to join me for a private discussion?"

"Yes, my lord," I said, getting to my feet.

The world tilted a little and I stopped for a moment to get my feet settled beneath me. The prince laughed and came over to offer me a shoulder to lean on. The page with the food arrived and the king's son told the lad to follow us.

We ascended the stairs and moved towards a doorway behind the three thrones. One of the king's guards preceded us into the space and another brought up the rear. They stationed themselves at the two exits and the rest of us sat. The page set the platter in front of me after a nod from the king. He then disappeared. As soon as he was gone, the door was closed and locked.

"Feel free to eat," the king said. "I'll visit with my son and give you a few moments."

"My thanks," I replied with a nod.

The prince updated the king on his adventures. The young ruler had been checking on their standing troops when the Beast had called out a challenge. The king looked pissed when his son told him that he'd thought that accepting the duel with the monster was a good idea. He was just as pissed when the prince just shrugged off his concerns.

"It all worked out," he finally declared, realizing that nothing he said would appease his father.

"Only because the healer intervened," the king fumed.

"The healer saved you as well," the boy retorted.

I felt the two guards tense and quickly glanced at the king's face to see if we were all about to die.

He laughed.

"I suppose you are right," he admitted.

The king looked at me.

"I'll grant you a boon," he said. "Perhaps it should be two - one for saving my foolish son - and another for saving his nearly-so-foolish father."

He looked back to the prince.

The prince recounted every part of the duel, with the man called The Beast, for his patriarch. If the story was edited, he did a good job. It really felt like he gave a blow-by-blow account of everything that happened - including how (and how many times) he had been injured.

The king made the prince stand and slowly turn - seeing for himself all of the tears and stains in the prince's shirt and shorts.

"What of your armor?" he asked.

"It's largely destroyed," the boy told his father. "They are bringing it. They removed it so that they could staunch the bleeding while we traveled."

From there, he described their entry into the city - and the moment when I was thrust forward to heal him.

The prince laughed and told his father, "... and then the healer woke up and told my guard that he was tired of bouncing along on the man's shoulder while staring at his shapely ass."

The king roared with laughter and glanced over at me. I blushed and he laughed harder.

"I love it!" he declared.

"We talked as we hurried to the palace to bring the prisoner to you," the prince continued. "The healer told me how his gift worked and then - to demonstrate - had me stab him. Is it not the most bizarre form of healing you've seen?"

"As you say," the king agreed, "it was an amazing thing to witness. I would not have believed it if I had not seen it with my own eyes. In fact, we were all still so stunned by the whole thing that we were completely caught off-guard when the Beast had suddenly recovered. Watching the healer revisit that monster's injuries upon him was as incredible to watch as it was terrible to behold."

"He contends that he can store those injuries away and cast them like a spell," the son told the father.

The king gaped at me.

"Is it true?" he asked.

"Those pustules on the front of his shoulder - those are injuries he has stored."

The prince turned to me.

"You used two of those on the Beast - to bring him to his knees - did you not?"

"Yes, my lord," I said. "He felt so emboldened from the healing that he was able to push past the trauma of his own injuries when I returned them to him. I delivered a stabbing wound to his heart and a another to his throat. Those were enough to stop him and enable me to push him onto his back."

"Marvelous!" the king said. "Even seeing it happen, I did not understand the depth of what transpired. Once again, I thank you for placing yourself between my son and I and the Beast."

"Glad to help...," I replied - unsure of what else to say. "It wouldn't have looked too good for me to have just healed the monster that threatened you..."

The king clapped his hands together and laughed.

"Too true! Your honesty is refreshing! I find myself curious as to how I have not heard of you before," the king said.

"I've only been here for a few days," I replied.

His face grew serious. I felt the guards tense again. I was on thin ice and I knew it.

"From whence came you, healer?" he asked.

"The story is a little hard to believe, my lord, but I will gladly share what I know and remember."

He nodded and the guards relaxed slightly.

"A man appeared to me while I visited the market near my home...," I began

Both the prince and the king watched me closely and analyzed every word.

"After offering me a life that sounded much more glorious than the one I had led up to that point, he killed my physical body and transported my spirit to the presence of a man who stood at least 10 feet tall. He was the most handsome being I have ever seen. He gave me a new name - and a new body - and sent me here. I found myself clothed in rags, sitting along the side of the road, in front of a small shop. I discovered my gift when I touched a three-legged mutt and traded my foot for the leg that he was missing. I was so gobsmacked, seeing the animal's leg, knee, and foot grow back that I didn't even realize - at the time - that I had given a portion of myself to accomplish it. The pain and the fatigue knocked me out. I awoke to find the matron of the building that I leaned against sweeping. Valeri took pity on me and gave me water to drink. This world is... uh... a good deal simpler than the one I came from and I was amazed at how clean the water was. She told me that her friend, Monika, could call water from the air. In my world, magic did not exist. That I find myself in a place where it is common, still astounds me. I have spent the last few days using my new gift to help those in need - trying to improve my understanding of my magic. I've picked up a few tricks from other magic users and I'm still trying to figure everything out. When the prince's carriage came down the road and the guards called for a healer, my friend thrust me forward and called out to the guards, telling them of my gift."

"Where is your friend?" the king asked.

He was much more relaxed now - even smiling a little.

"Lost in the chaos, I think," I replied. "After I healed your son, I passed out..."

The king laughed and said, "Yes, that's right - you woke up staring at the guard's shapely ass..."

He laughed again and I nodded.

"This handsome being that brought you here..."

"He said that he was called The All-Father...," I told the monarch.

"You do remind me of him," the king said, nodding. "He is definitely a champion of those in need - but his methods are sometimes... ofttimes... unpredictable."

"That was my impression of him as well," I agreed.

"If The All-Father has sponsored you, perhaps I am misguided to give you a weighty boon - it might imbalance things too much..."

I mentally kicked myself. I'd already planned to ask for one of those storage-bracelet things as one of my boons. I still hadn't decided on my second request. I had just fucked myself.

The king laughed and I turned from looking inside of myself to studying his face.

"I was jesting," he said. "I do so love your purity and honesty. You would do well to guard yourself and your feelings but I find you to be a breath of fresh air."

The prince glanced at his father and then turned back to me.

"Have you given thought to what you would ask my father for?" he inquired.

"I honestly don't know enough to be sure that I'm taking full advantage of what I'm being offered...," I admitted.

The king clapped his hands together and laughed loudly again.

"Delightful!"

"I have..., " I began.

I decided that maybe I shouldn't admit that my friend had one... would that be too telling? Willa acted like the thing was super-special.

"I have seen someone who had a... uh... piece of jewelry," I said. "I've found myself in a few fights. My shoulder pack is cumbersome. It also doesn't hold much..."

The prince turned to the king.

"A storage-device," he said. "The healer admitted that he removed some thugs who were preying on some orphans. If I'm reading between the lines correctly, he took from the wolves and gave to the lambs - and he had to make several trips..."

I laughed and nodded.

"I sent my friend. She brought several of the 'lambs' and we worked together to transport everything."

"A practical request," the king said, nodding. "We'll find something that suits you. You are dressed conservatively..."

I laughed again.

"These clothes belonged to a man who tried to rob me," I answered. "He took me to where he held a captive - a widow. Her dead husband's corpse lay rotting nearby."

"You killed him?"

"Each time he stabbed me, I returned his attacks to his own body," I reported. "His last thrust tore out my throat."

The king nodded.

"Terribly just," he said. "The All-Father. I do see his hand in this. You bear his yoke well."

"Do you have a suggestion for what I should ask for as my second request?"

"What weapon do you wield? What armor do you wear?"

The prince laughed.

"Father, he just told you that he returns his enemies attacks upon them. So long as he doesn't succumb to their attack, he quickly turns their evil back on their own heads. He wouldn't want armor."

"I carry a staff but have - so far at least - only used it to carry water-jugs."

Both the king and the prince laughed.

"The dagger I took from the murderer has served me well enough so far. I usually just stab myself, turn the injuries into pustules, and then use those to fight."

I touched one of the fatty nodules as I explained.

The prince turned to his father and said, "We've a few tainted blades that we have little use for..."

The king nodded and said, "See if he'd like one - maybe a poisoned one - I won't count that as his request though."

"Agreed," the prince replied. "What do you think about giving him a portal stone?"

"Those are dear, as you well know," the king said. "Explain..."

The prince glanced at me and then looked back at his dad.

"I would see our new friend as well-equipped as we are able," the young man said. "You saw him take down the Beast... Can you not imagine that this is a man - the champion of a powerful god - who willfully places himself in peril to defend others... Can you not imagine situations where your armies are not fit to intervene but a powerful friend might do great good?"

The king steepled his fingers together and appeared to be thinking long and hard about the prince's words. It kind of sounded like they would be coming back to beg for favors. It also sounded like I might get some "phat lewt" - as some of the gamers used to say.

The monarch finished his pondering and raised his eyes first to me and then to his son.

"Get him the storage-device that he wants, let him pick from the weapons and the armor we have in the storeroom, give him a portal stone, and then have the mage give him our mark of friendship."

I didn't have a clue about what the last thing was that he'd mentioned but the prince's eyes widened. He nodded.

The king turned to me.

"The Mark will be given by the mage. Your magic should not resist it but - if it tries - please attempt to allow the Mark. This mark can be tested by any mage and it declares that you are a friend of the crown. You will be given most supplies just by asking. You will have access to all but the most private areas of the palace. You will be exempt from taxes and fees."

"Sweet!"

The king laughed.

"Sweet... I like it. A phrase from your world?"

I nodded.

"If...," the king said. "If you find anything I say or ask to be in conflict with whatever the All-Father has directed, please let me know so that I can remove the point of contention."

"He kind of just told me that he was 'kicking me out of the nest'...," I answered.

"A curious idiom...," the king said quietly.

"It's from my world as well," I told the friendly monarch. "When the young birds are ready to test their wings, the mother shoves them into the air..."

"That fits what I know of The All-Father," the king said, nodding. "You seem to be getting along well enough..."

"Too early to tell for sure...," I replied, grinning broadly.

The king belted out another hearty laugh.

"I guess you did say that you'd only been here a few days..."

The king stood. He extended his hand to me. I took it and he shook my hand. He had a solid grip. Dad had always said that you could tell a lot about a guy by his handshake.

"Prince Kiro," the king said, "I leave the good healer in your charge."

The young man stood and gave his father a little bow.

"I will follow your instructions to the letter, my lord," he said. "May The All-Father smile upon our friendship with his champion."

"Indeed," the king replied.

The king turned to the guard beside the exit to the receiving hall and nodded. The guard opened the door and started to step out. The air was filled with the screams of people dying.

"Let me through!" I yelled.

The captain of the king's guard was standing a few steps beyond the private room. He was holding a pike in his hands. He looked our way.

"Seal the door!" he yelled to the guard who had stepped out. "The Beast has escaped and is headed this way!"

I dove between the man and the doorframe. He slammed the door shut behind me.

The guard captain looked at me. He looked like he was about to offer me a weapon when another scream rent the air and the Beast bounded into the massive room.

The monstrous man charged through the guards - and anyone else who stood in his way - like they were dried weeds. He smashed them aside without hesitation. Their bodies fell before him but did not slow his advance. He rushed towards us. The king's guards pointed pikes at the brute and thrust them at him as he came within range. Those that he didn't knock aside barely seemed to faze him.

The brute took a vicious thrust from the guard captain and then punched the man in the face hard enough to crush his skull. The captain fell to the stone floor. His face was a mangled mess. I looked up at the man they called the Beast.

His eyes fell on me and he laughed.

He stepped forward, grabbed my arms in his fists, and began pulling me apart. I started building my magic but I didn't unleash it until he had managed to pull both of my limbs from their sockets and throw them to the floor. He held me by the neck and squeezed. I shoved all of my injuries into his body. I didn't even have to grit my teeth against the pain. The thought of what I was about to do to this motherfucker had permanently set a massive grin on my face.

As the pain and harm that he'd done to me was returned back to him, he lost his grip on me. I landed on my feet and continued to grin at him as my arms flew back to their places and his own were rent from his body. He screamed in pain and rage.

I raced to the guard captain and healed him. I grabbed the newly-formed pustule and threw it at the Beast. A portion of his huge face caved in. I hurried from guard to guard, pulling the wounds from their bodies, healing them, and casting their injuries at the massive brute that was still standing - though teetering now - at the door behind which the king and his son were hidden.

I ran through the hall, collected up the rest of the damage as quickly as possible, and raced back to throw it at him as well.

I ran out of the giant room and headed down the passageway - following the trail of carnage that led back to the cell where the monster had been held.

Behind me, I heard the thunderous sound of the Beast falling to the floor of the receiving hall. I left the monster to the newly-restored guards and raced to victim after victim to save every one that I could.

The brute had been as indiscriminate as he had been ruthless. Maids, pages, guards, soldiers, cooks,... I healed each as quickly as I could and moved on. My collarbone had no more room for pustules. They began growing down my chest.

It seemed like an hour later - despite how I hurried - before I arrived at the dungeon. The guards had been mutilated. I placed my hands on them anyway but my magic informed me that there was nothing more to be done. I didn't have enough skill to pull that many sundered pieces back together - or to return their spirits to their bodies.

The guard captain found me on my knees, sobbing. He informed me that the king and the prince were waiting for me - wanting to be sure that I had survived.

He told me that I had done enough. He pulled me to my feet and gripped my arm in his fist (though gently) to guide me. My eyes were swollen with grief and I was having trouble seeing. I lost track of all of the twists and turns that we took. Behind us, I could hear a parade of footfalls. It never occurred to me what they might be.

We arrived in the hall and the captain brought me to the foot of the stairs. He left me standing and knelt before the king. I looked up to see Prince Kiro sitting beside his father. There was an empty throne to the king's left.

"My lord and king," the captain said. "Every person standing behind the healer lay dying from the attacks of the Beast. This man laughed as the Beast tore him limb from limb. The monster held him by the neck and the healer grinned in the face of death. He then returned upon the Beast every injury that the giant had visited upon this champion. Despite having his arms torn free, the monster continued to stand. The healer raced to me and healed my crushed skull. He sent this injury to the Beast as well. The healer moved through every person in this room, collected their injuries up, and set them upon the monster. The Beast finally toppled as the healer moved into the hallway to help the victims there. Myself and your guards then finished off the monster - though he was already near-dead. As instructed, I went to find the healer. What I discovered was a trail of your guards and servants who were all recovering after being healed by this man. I finally found him in the dungeon, weeping over the four guards we left there. Their bodies were beyond repair. They have made the final journey. The healer was distraught. As you requested, I have brought him before you. My lord, in all of my years, I have never seen one as selfless as this man. With all due respect, my king, I thought him insane as I watched through ruined eyes as he laughed at the monster. I have never seen anything so terrible and I have never been happier to report that this crazy fucker deserves some kind of parade."

I turned to look behind me as someone started clapping and cheering. Soon, the hall echoed from the noise of it all. The crowd quieted, and I turned back to see that the king had risen from his seat. He raised his voice to address everyone in the room.

"Even before this climactic conclusion, Prince Kiro and I had decided to give the healer the Mark of the Crown. The royal mage should be here shortly and I would ask all of you to bear witness that this man is truly a friend to the kingdom."

An elderly guy in robes came in a moment later - escorted by two attendants. The trio passed through the crowd and stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

"Please give the healer the Mark of the Crown," the king instructed.

"As you wish, my lord," the man said.

He turned to me.

"Hold out your left hand, palm up," the mage instructed. "My assistants will hold your hand as I apply the mark to the inside of your wrist. I must warn you that it will burn a little."

The guard captain laughed and said, "I just watched the healer grin as the Beast tore his arms off. I think he'll survive."

A wave of quiet laughter rippled through the crowd.

The two young women held my hand and the old mage focused his magic on my body. I watched him with my eyes, my senses, and my magic. A kaleidoscope of colors poured into my wrist. I studied my skin, tissue, and bones as the man wove the colors together into a circle bearing the head of a falcon - a symbol that I'd already seen on banners, flags, and capes throughout my time within the walls of the royal grounds. The magic didn't really burn; it just kind of tingled a little. I could see how somebody who wasn't use to pain might think it felt like it was burning.

I laughed as it suddenly occurred to me that I should have practiced setting my balls on fire and then storing that away. I wondered if the Beast would have like that or not...

The old mage looked up at me. Seeing my smile, he shook his head.

"Takes all kinds...," he said quietly.

At a nod from the king, the mage and his two pretty assistants headed off - back through the crowd.

The crowd looked up and I turned to see Prince Kiro standing on the seat of his throne.

"Hip, hip...!" he yelled.

"Hurray!" the crowd chorused.

"Hip, hip...!" he yelled again.

"Hurray!" the crowd answered.

"Hip, hip...!" he yelled one last time.

"Hurray!" the crowd cheered.

The prince came down the stairs and took my hand and shook it. He turned me to face the crowd and waved them forward. The guard captain was the next to shake my hand.

For the next half-hour or so, I accepted greetings and words of thanks from one person after another. It was a little overwhelming. I felt an arm on my shoulder and glanced over to see the king standing beside me. He smiled at each person as they stepped up to take their turn.

Eventually, the last person approached. It was one of the cooks. She was holding the hand of a little girl. She picked the girl up and thrust her into my arms. The girl wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed my cheek.

"Thank you for healing my mommy," the child said.

I lost it. I bawled my eyes out. The girl spent the whole time hugging and kissing me and telling me that it was going to be alright.

I felt arms around my ribs and looked down to see the cook hugging me. She was crying too. I hugged her back, kissed her forehead, and returned her child to her.

The cook glanced to her left - behind me - and stepped back.

"Stop in the kitchens any time," she said. "I always have fresh bread in the warmer."

"That sounds amazing," I told her. "Thank you."

I dried my tears and turned to see the prince waiting.

The prince held his hands out to the little girl and she lunged for him. He laughed.

"Let's go get some of mommy's fresh bread and then I need to take the healer with me for a while."

"Okay...," the girl said.

She hugged his neck, kissed his cheek, and wriggled free. She ran ahead of us, giggling as she raced off.

"Loki," the prince said. "This is Mila. She's a second cousin of mine."

"Third," the cook said.

The prince waved away the correction.

"Mila is the older sister that I never had," he went on.

"I'm a year younger than you," the cook said, laughing.

"Other than her habit of continuously correcting me, she is faultless," the prince said with a grin.

Mila reached to pinch him on the ass but he laughed as he evaded her fingers.

As we walked towards the promise of fresh-baked bread, I watched the two interact. Mila wasn't fat but she was curvy. Her curves were in all of the right places. I wondered if Prince Kiro was trying to hook me up. Mila reminded me of Nella. I really needed to get back to visit the widow to see how things had turned out with her and her brother-in-law.

"Nala!" the cook yelled. "You know you're not supposed to touch the sharp knives."

The little blonde-haired, blue-eyed cherub's eyes were as wide as saucers. Blood was streaming from a gash that was half the size of her hand.

"I was trying to help," she argued.

I quickly scooped her up and pulled the injury from her body into my own. Nala gasped as she noticed that I was bleeding.

"You... You took it from me?" she asked, looking from her hand to mine.

"I heal quickly," I told her. "Nothing to worry about, angel."

She hugged my neck, kissed my cheek, and squirmed free of my grasp. She went right back for the bread knife again - but her mother grabbed it away and then proceeded to wipe up the blood before retrieving a little crock of butter along with a dull knife to spread it. She set the butter next to the prince and me and proceeded to cut the bread while scowling at her daughter.

"If the prince wasn't here, I'd blister you," she told the girl.

"Save me, Prince Kiro!" the little darling gasped, throwing herself into his arms.

He laughed and held her tightly while kissing her cheeks. It was obvious that she was used to his embrace. Based on the fact that the cook had her child at work with her, I surmised that there wasn't a father in the picture.

Once we each had a few slices of warm bread - with plenty of butter melting into it - the prince tried to talk. The cook ordered him to finish his food first and he stuck his tongue out at her. She lunged at him - apparently planning to tweak his nipple - but her daughter blocked the attack and the pair grinned back at the woman. I got the feeling that this was a common game between the three of them.

"Once we finish eating, we'll visit the storeroom and then the mage's quarters, and then I'll let you be on your way with our thanks."

"Can I see your mark?" Nala asked me.

I showed her my wrist. She squinted.

"I can't see it," she complained.

"You push a bit of magic into it and it will appear," the prince explained.

I pressed my finger next to where I knew it was and pushed my healing magic into it. The falcon's head and the circle appeared. As soon as I stopped the magic, it faded.

"Can I try?" the girl asked.

I held my wrist out to her. She pushed her finger against my wrist and focused. The tip of her little tongue speared out from between her lips as she concentrated. I was so distracted by her adorableness that I was caught off-guard when the Mark appeared.

"Well done!" I told her.

I quickly looked at the magic. It was amber-colored.

"Since when do you have magic?!" her mother gasped.

"I learned it from you, momma," the girl insisted.

The prince dug his fingers into the little girl's ribs and tickled her until she complained that she was going to pee herself. He handed her off to her mother and we made our escape.

"Stay away from the knives," he warned the girl. "I'm taking the healer with me."

"Meanie...," she complained.

He stuck his tongue out at her and she gave him back the same. He laughed at her and we slipped out through the open doorway.

We traversed a few hallways and went up a flight of stairs and arrived at a doorway with a guard. The guard snapped to attention and didn't object when the prince opened the door and led me inside.

The massive storeroom had racks and racks of weapons and armor and all sorts of stuff like that. I spied a chainmail shirt that reminded me of the mithril one that Frodo had in the "Lord of the Rings" movie and was drawn to it like a moth to the flames. I nearly moaned as I ran my fingers down over it.

"See if it fits you," the prince said.

"Seriously?"

"Dad said you could have anything in here," he replied, nodding. "Try it on. If it won't fit you but you think it might fit your friend, you could still take it."

I fought a fit of the giggles as I pulled the thing from the armor rack and dropped it over my head. It was a little snug. I ended up having to have the prince's help to get the thing off.

"Could I bring my friend back here?" I asked. "I hate to take it with not knowing if it will fit her."

"You've got the Mark," he said. "You can show it to the guard and come in here whenever you want. Treat this place like a library, if you like."

I put the shirt back on the rack and ran my fingers over it again.

"We can have one made in your size," the prince offered.

I shook my head and told him, "It's like you said, I don't really need armor."

"I still can't believe you just grinned at the Beast while he ripped your arms off."

"It WAS pretty funny. I was so anticipating fucking him up that I didn't even really feel it."

"That's crazy!"

"It worked..."

"Even crazier...!"

In the end, I tried a blade that held a necrotic curse. Wounds from the blade ate away living flesh. I couldn't heal the damage - at least not yet. I grabbed up a regular blade and carved a chunk out of my arm to keep the necrosis from taking over. I healed myself back and returned the cursed blade to its place - in a sealed case.

The poisoned dagger that I tried was almost as nasty. I could barely fight the toxin as it invaded my body. Once more, I carved off a chunk of my arm to beat it. I kept that weapon. I wanted to practice with it. I was sure that a tolerance to poisons would be useful.

The next blade I pulled from a sealed case sent piercing pain through my brain. The sword hilt glued itself to my palm. I couldn't drop it. Prince Kiro chopped my hand off and we both laughed when the sword immediately released its hold on the severed hand. We used gloves to put the sword back and I reattached my hand and healed it. Good times...

After that, I decided I'd hung around long enough. I told the prince that I'd come back later and experiment with a few of the other swords. I grabbed the poisoned blade with its matching sheath and hooked my belt through it, hanging it from my left hip.

A few more passageways and a couple more flights of stairs and we came to the mage's workshop. The prince tapped on a mirror and the mage's face appeared. He told the man what we wanted. We waited a few moments and the door opened.

We entered the workshop and stood by the large table. It was covered in a variety of scars, stains, and burn marks. I wondered what all the guy got up to in here. I'd love to just hang out...

He pulled a small drawer out and took out a runed stone about the size of a shooter marble. He handed it to me.

"This is a portal stone," he said. "Travel to a safe place you would like to operate out of. Push some magic into the stone while declaring your intent to make that your home location. You will feel the magic take hold. Keep the stone with you at all times. When you want to return home, hold hands or touch those you wish to bring with you, push magic into the stone, and tell it to take you home. After you have rested, stand in your home location, push magic into the stone, and tell it to return you back to where you came from. Obviously, you can choose not to return to that location and - instead - go somewhere else and portal back home - which will change your temporary portal to that new location."

I nodded. I understood what he was saying.

"One last word of caution," he said. "I have traveled home for a night of rest and returned to my waypoint to find it flooded in lava. Nasty business! Try to make sure that your return-point is as safe as possible. Be prepared to defend yourself when you return."

"I appreciate the advice," I told him. "Thanks."

He nodded and then turned to the prince.

"How large of a storage-device do you want?"

"You have any of the storerooms that are... I don't know... 10 foot by 12?"

"A few...," the mage said cautiously.

"We want him to be able to take lots of stuff with him - and conversely bring lots back," the prince said.

"I see...," the mage replied. "I have one that's 12 foot by 16 that's stable. That's the biggest I have."

"Is this like... like a whole room?" I asked.

The prince nodded and said, "It's got shelves inside. When you access the storage-device you step inside, grab what you want, and then step back out. You can store things the same way - or you can just toss them in and the thing will try to find a good spot for whatever it is."

"I really don't think I'd need bigger than a 10 by 12," I said. "How tall?"

The prince looked at the mage and said, "8 feet?"

"10, I think," the older man replied.

"That should be fine," I told the prince.

"You could simply give him another later, if you change your mind," the mage told the prince. "I've carried two before and it's fairly easy to manage."

The prince nodded and said, "Let's do that then. If we send him to do a mine rescue or something, we'll just load him up before he goes."

"Very good, my prince," the mage said.

He pulled out a drawer and looked into it. He pushed it back in.

He grinned at the prince and said, "We want simple - not gaudy, right?"

"Yeah," the prince said, grinning back.

The mage pulled out the next drawer and held it down for us to look inside. There was a half-dozen wire loops in the wooden drawer that looked like they were made of 12-karet gold.

"Pick whichever one you like," the mage told me. "They're all the same."

They looked to be identical. I grabbed one at random.

"Slip it onto either wrist," the mage explained. "They're fairly straight-forward."

"Does it matter if I do the left? Will it bother the Mark?"

"It won't interfere," the mage replied. "You just think about accessing your storage and you'll appear in the room. To store or retrieve items without entering the storeroom, just focus your intent on either storing or retrieving a particular item. You can place your finger in a pot of seeds and focus your intent on only storing a certain seed and only that one will go into storage. You do, however, have to touch the object to store it. When you retrieve it, it will most likely appear in your hand. If you practice enough, you can pull armor out of storage and get it to go back onto your body. You need to be wearing it appropriately when you store it and then press your finger to it and send it away. When you call it back, it should return like it was before. You can do it while you're moving but the magic's fairly simple so don't get too crazy or it'll just tumble to the ground."

"Thanks again," I told the man.

"From what I've learned, you served the king well today," the mage said. "I'm happy to assist."

I slipped the wire over my left hand and it settled onto my wrist, tightened down to fit smoothly, and then disappeared.

"That's handy!" I gasped.

The mage laughed, and said, "The women love their jewelry. The rest of us prefer not to be robbed."

"Quite right," I agreed.

I willed the storage-device to give me access and I was suddenly standing in a room full of wooden shelves that were filled with a whole ton of shit! There was a whole rack of camping supplies, another filled with containers of food, and yet another that was filled with books - books on magic!

I reappeared in the mage's workroom.

"Uh... I got a used one," I told the pair. "That one's already filled with stuff..."

"Make sure there's a coin chest in there...," the prince replied.

I ducked back inside. There was indeed a small chest. I opened the lid. It was filled with silver and gold coins with the falcon symbol on them. There were some gemstones in the chest as well. I popped back out again.

"Dude...!" I said, my eyes as big as saucers.

The mage and the prince laughed.

"Good," the prince said, cuffing me on the shoulder. "Can't send you off poorly equipped, can we?"

"Can I sleep in there?" I asked.

The mage shook his head and said, "Unfortunately, no. Your mind goes into your storage vault but your body stays behind. You can retreat inside to read or study for a bit but the room will forcibly eject you after a while - and your body wouldn't get any rest while your mind was away because no time has passed for it."

"Good to know... thanks."

He nodded and returned the drawer to its place.

"Our thanks," the prince said to the mage.

"Safe travels," the mage told me. "By your leave?" he asked the prince.

The prince laughed and opened the door. We stepped into the hall and the old mage closed the door behind us.

"That's all I have," the prince said. "I'll get you to the gate and take your leave. All of the spare mounts have been claimed by the army, I'm afraid. We don't have that many to begin with."

"We're cool," I told him. "I've tried riding a couple times. I'd rather walk."

A few minutes later, I passed beneath the portcullis and left the stronghold behind. I turned back to look at the structure. It was only three or four stories tall. The big hall where I'd fought the Beast was one of the taller buildings in the whole place. I tried to figure out where the mage's rooms had been but gave up. I'd gone around and around enough that I'd lost my sense of direction.

I retraced my steps - traveling back down the road that I'd arrived on earlier in the day. I shook my head in disbelief that this had all been a single day.

The sun was heading towards the horizon and I needed to track Willa down before it was dark. I took off at a jog - following the main road - hoping I'd recognize the side-street I needed - or that Willa would spot me returning.

By that point, I was sure that she had probably gone back to the orphanage. I'd traveled there a couple times from this central thoroughfare. Hopefully, I wouldn't get lost.

My stomach was churning with anxious tension when I finally spied the market where Willa and I had sold the weapons. I smelled rat-skewers and my stomach grumbled. I followed my nose to the cart and got in line.

"I knew I'd find you here," a familiar voice said.

Arms wrapped around my neck and soft lips crushed my own. I grabbed Willa's perfect ass in my hands and pulled her up so that I could kiss her harder. Someone behind me grumbled and I stepped out of line.

"I missed you," she said, her forehead pressed to mine.

"Couldn't tell that at all...," I teased.

Her head shot forward and she bit my lip - pulling back - nearly tearing my flesh. I reached a fist for her tits and dug my fingers into her tender mounds.

"Fuck first," she complained.

"Eat first," I argued.

"Fine! But you're buying," she said firmly. "Kill anybody?" she inquired.

"One or two."

"That big fucker?" she asked.

"I smiled at him as he tore my arms off," I told her. "He held me up by my neck. I laughed in his face and gave it all back to him."

"Harsh..."

"I healed a couple dozen people that he had mangled and threw all of that at him as well. He finally collapsed and I left him for the guards to deal with. I hurried back along the path of destruction and was able to heal all but the four that he mutilated when he escaped from the cell."

"Busy day...," she said.

"I need you...," I told her.

"You said you were hungry...," she countered.

I dragged her back into the line. I kept a hand on her ass - squeezing it each time we moved closer to the cart.

"You tread a dangerous path," she hissed at me.

"I'm gonna fuck you so hard you pass out," I promised.

"You'd better," she replied.

"Six," I told the vendor, "plus whatever she wants."

Willa belly-laughed.

"Six as well," she told the merchant.

He told me the price and I laid the coin on the counter - keeping my finger on top of it. It was nearly twice what I owed him. He handed over the skewers and I pulled my finger away.

"Keep the rest," I told him.

"My thanks, good sir," he said with a smile.

Willa and I chewed our food as we walked. Our hands were full so she used her body to direct my path. We traveled down a dark alley and I sensed two young men ahead. As we got close, they moved towards the center of the alleyway.

"If you're smart," Willa said, "you'll each take a skewer and let us pass. If you're stupid, I'll kill you both without missing a single bite."

"The skewers," the smaller one said.

The larger one hissed at him but accepted the meat-filled stick from Willa's hand just the same.

We passed the pair and continued on.

"Lose your pack?" Willa asked quietly.

"Storage device," I replied, just as softly.

We finished our food and arrived at an open area - like a park. There was a fire burning towards the center. A few people sat around the fire.

A big man stepped out as we emerged from the alley.

"What'd you want?" he asked.

"A quiet place to rest," Willa replied.

"A silver," he answered.

She took out the coin and held it up.

"No interruptions, no guests, and no shit...," she said firmly.

He nodded, accepted the coin, and pointed to a tent.

"Make sure you tell the curious ones," she warned him. "I'd hate to accidently kill anybody..."

"I'll tell them," he said. "After that, it's on them."

She stopped in her tracks and fixed him with a glare. He froze.

"I'll tell them," he promised.

We made our way to the tent. It wasn't tall enough to stand up inside of - so we stripped before we entered.

Willa pulled me on top of her without a single word of warning, grabbed my cock, rubbed it against her vulva until I was stiff and she was wet, and then she pulled me inside of her greedy twat and wrapped her thighs around me - digging her heels into my ass.

"You promised...," she whispered.

For a moment I had to think back to what I had said - then it occurred to me. I had promised to fuck her until she passed out.

I hunched my back, driving my cock into her, as I leaned down to lick, suck, and then chew on her nipple. She threaded her fingers into my hair and pulled me down harder. Her heels dug sharply into my ass - demanding that I fuck her deeper.

Neither of us screamed, yowled, or even moaned loudly. It was the quietest love-making session I'd ever taken part in. The only sounds were of our bodies colliding and the sound of her pussy sucking at my cock as I withdrew it - before slamming it back inside of her again.

All of our moans were muffled by our lips - which rarely parted. When we spoke naughty things to each other, we whispered them into the other's ears - or against their throat or jaw.

When she climaxed (both times), her mouth opened wide but nothing came out. To be safe, I still held my hand over her gaping maw. She returned the favor several minutes later, when I exploded inside of her. A soundless scream poured from my mouth into the palm of her hand.

After that, we made out while writhing against one another. As soon as I hardened again, she rolled me onto my back and got herself off on my stiff prick two more times before she sucked me into her mouth and down her throat and didn't stop sucking until I poured my seed down her esophagus - straight into her tummy.

I pulled her up when I'd finished. I kissed her hard and held her in my arms. Her cheek lay on my chest. Her eyes closed. I was asleep in no time.

~~~ End of Chapter 4 ~~~

There are 18 chapters in this story series.

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