by Allan Joyal
"Hey!" she shouted. "No one is going to attack me here. Well, maybe Eddie, but he knows not to. I was burning up. This will make it possible to keep up with you!"
"It is hot," I said, looking up at Jord's sun. It was a bit larger and more orange than the one on Earth. "Try to avoid slowing us down though."
Lydia did keep up with the rest of the group. This was made a lot easier after the rest of the ladies joined her. Hencktor was having difficulty breathing at that point. Lydia and Elizabeth had rather sensible panties on under the skirts, but the outfits of the six coeds proved that they had planned to do some flirting on Daytona Beach. I mentioned to Heather that I remembered them having shorts, but she just smiled.
"We packed the shorts two days ago. We could stop and get them out, but do you think any of us are as bare as Lisa?" she asked, pointing at the former secretary. To everyone's shock, she had been wearing a red thong under her skirt. Eddie had growled when he saw it.
The men were now walking ahead of the ladies. Henck and Eddie seemed tempted to look back constantly. Eddie had a seemingly permanent look of lust on his face. Hencktor's expression was one of confusion and longing. Eddie and Al were behind him when I spoke up.
"What is bothering you?" I asked.
"The women, they are showing so much and..." Hencktor said with a blush. He put his chin on his chest and closed his eyes. We continued to walk as I thought about my answer.
"Don't take it the wrong way," I responded. "Most of them were prepared to wear a lot less while swimming. They are hot and not used to skirts. Unless you expect us to run into others I think they will cause no problems."
Hencktor blushed more, and his right hand reflexively moved towards the front of his pants. Steve, who had been walking behind us, choked off a laugh. I looked back to glare at him and found him smiling.
Steve's grin actually widened. "What?" he smirked. "I'm just glad to know that I'm not the only one who appreciates the view."
I had no response to that. I looked forward again. "Henck. You are feeling a normal reaction when a man looks at a beautiful woman. Right now all I can recommend is that you don't look back for a while."
The man nodded sadly. His hand went back to his side and we continued to journey down the canyon. The men kept to the dry ground, but the girls were now wading in the stream. It was rather shallow, rarely coming up above the girl's knees, but the water was definitely cold if I understood the few complaints.
The bug that had bit Dusty proved to have friends. Al and Martha both were bit on an arm in the first hour after Dusty got bit. Both times Henck quickly looked over the bite, but other than holding the arms in the stream to allow the cold water to soothe them, recommended no treatment. I discovered the power of the bite when one of the bugs landed on the back of my neck and sampled my skin.
The burst of extreme pain dropped me to my knees. My right hand was holding the spear as my left flew to the back of my neck to brush away the insect. Somehow I was able to stay upright, although once I was sure the insect was gone, I leaned on the spear, holding it in both hands.
Kariy and Heather ran to me as I knelt. Tears of pain blinded me for a moment as the back of my neck throbbed from the bite. I could faintly hear the sound of something quickly buzzing away as I concentrated on regaining control of my legs.
"Those fucking flies!" I heard Heather shout. Hands gripped my shoulders and I could feel someone brushing my hair up so they could look at my neck. "Henck! Is there any way to keep them from biting?"
I could not hear the mumbled answer. Interestingly, the rough treatment on my neck and shoulders distracted me, and I slowly stood back up with a groan. "Now I know how a rhino feels after getting hit by the tranq dart," I quipped.
The others laughed as I shook my neck to clear it. I heard footsteps behind me and then a hand gripped the back of my head, pushing my face down. I allowed my head to drop and then jumped as cold water poured onto my neck.
"Hey! What's with the water?" I cried as I spun around. Kariy stood behind me, an empty canteen held in her hand.
"The cold water soothes the bite," she reminded me, pointing towards Martha. "I just wanted to help."
Furious, I stood staring at Kariy. Part of me wanted to scream, but the pain had gone down considerably and was now no worse than a mild bee sting. Feeling that there was no real harm done, I smiled at the young lady.
"It did help," I admitted. "Now if we are ready to continue."
The group responded with a chorus of groans. Eddie mentioned stopping for food, but the rest all had an expression of fear at the suggestion. We started moving again, continuing the slow climb down the canyon.
About an hour later my stomach was starting to grumble. No one in the group was thirsty. The girls were keeping the canteens full with water from the stream. An empty canteen would be passed back to the last person walking in the stream. That person would then step out of the water and stand by the stream for a couple of minutes before kneeling down and filling the canteen.
Hencktor and Kariy did not appear too worried about the quality of the water. Henck actually expressed some puzzlement about the care the girls were taking. Kariy just ignored the process. She had been very uncomfortable with removing her skirt to walk in the water and was now walking next to me fully clothed. I wanted to talk to her more, but Eddie had started walking directly in front of us and his stares and rude comments reduced Kariy to silent blushing.
I thought about pushing the group to walk longer, but the canyon was opening up as the slope we were descending became a nearly flat expanse of green and gold. The stream was also slowing down and ahead I could see a sizable pond. Next to the pond lay several massive flat-topped boulders. I pointed to the boulders. "Lunch at the boulders. And ladies, the skirts go back on after that point."
The coeds responded with a loud raspberry. I glanced back to find Natalie smiling. She noticed my surprise and shrugged. "We know we have to get dressed again. But you are fun to tease."
I shook my head as Eddie surprised all of us by sprinting ahead to the rocks. He threw himself down on one, lying there motionless; as we caught up we could hear him moaning, "Food. Rest. Food. Rest," repeatedly.
"I think Eddie wants food and a rest," Steve observed with a laugh.
"You at least have good shoes," Elizabeth sighed. "My feet are sore after two days of hiking barefoot. Ron, we need to fix that."
"He asked back in the village," Heather said. "When we visited the one merchant in town, there were no boots for sale. Hopefully, we can change that in the next town."
"Henck. How big is this town Linktrum?" I asked.
Henck was looking off into the distance. I followed his gaze and realized that just past the pool there was a road intersecting the trail we had been on. A quick glance showed a dust cloud above the road to the left. I tried to see through the dust, but it was some distance away.
"Girls, get those skirts on, now!" I shouted. "We might be having visitors soon."
The girls stood frozen for a moment. Martha and Lisa had already set packs on the rocks and were digging through them. They pulled their hands out and ran over to Natalie.
Natalie slowly swung her own pack from her shoulders. I heard Henck offer a curse that the injured girl had been carrying anything, but as she pulled skirt after skirt from the pack it became clear that the pack was very light. She seemed to know who to give each skirt to and in moments the girls were slithering into their outfits.
"We're dressed," Heather said needlessly once they had finished fastening the skirts. "Anything more?"
I looked over at Henck, who shrugged. "That cloud is in the direction of Linktrum. They aren't very close though. We should be able to eat before they arrive."
The girls gave a cheer. Martha and Lisa returned to the packs. Kariy walked over by them, but Lisa sent her away with a smile. The two girls were pulling more wedges of cheese and packages of dried meat out of the packs.
"God," Eddie said when he
looked over at what was being prepared. "I want a pizza. And I'd kill for a beer."
"As I remember, you hated the beer," I said. "And we don't exactly have the means of making a pizza right now."
Eddie sat back up and glared at me. Martha and Lisa were now going around and giving each person a large wedge of cheese and some strips of dried meat. I accepted mine and sat down on one of the rocks.
I was taking my first bite of cheese when Natalie sat down on my left and Kariy settled in on my right. Both pressed their bodies against mine, sandwiching me between them. "Oof."
"Sorry," Natalie said with a giggle as Kariy giggled herself. "We just want to sit next to our favorite man."
I looked over at Natalie, but she merely winked and tore into one of the strips of meat with her teeth. She started chewing it slowly. I joined in by taking a bite of my own strip and concentrated on eating.
It appeared that everyone was hungry. Conversation was sparse. Hencktor had not sat down, preferring to stand and watch the road. Steve was sitting, but had the axe leaning on the rock next to his right hand, where he could grab it quickly. I had the spear pinned between my legs as I continued to eat.
Heather walked up, and I could see a frustrated frown cross her face. "There's no place for me to sit," she said.
Natalie looked at me and winked. "There are other rocks," she replied cautiously.
"I wanted to sit at this one," Heather said. She was taking small bites of cheese and nibbling them quickly.
Natalie just sat quietly for a moment. "Well ..." she temporized, "I guess I could move and let you sit between Ron and me. Is that acceptable?"
Heather's entire face lit up and she smiled. "Perfect! I'll owe you. How about I massage your legs tonight?"
Natalie groaned. "Don't remind me. My good leg feels like my foot is full of lead at the moment." She set the food behind her and, using her hands, shifted away from me. A moment later she was sitting about a foot away, Heather dashed up. The blond helped her friend finish moving and then sat down.
"Thank you," Heather said warmly. She kissed Natalie on the cheek. I turned to look at her. Heather was holding her food in her left hand. In an instant, her right hand was on the back of my head and she pulled me in for a kiss on the lips.
I jerked back, shocked by Heather's action, and looked around. Eddie, Al and Elizabeth appeared to be distracted by a conversation. The others were all smiling. Steve even winked at me when I stared at him for a moment. None appeared upset. I concentrated on my food and tried to figure out what had just happened.
I had finished the food when Dusty came around carrying canteens. She offered one to me, and I used the cold water in it to wash down the meal. When I handed it back, Dusty was staring off at the open lands ahead. "This is going to suck," she said.
"Why?"
She pointed at the road. "The road doesn't follow the stream. It might stay close, but we won't be right next to it. It means the water in the canteens will have time to warm up."
Dusty went around to everyone, offering water. Once she had finished, she walked back up the canyon a short distance. I could see her kneeling and refilling the canteens. I was so distracted I was shocked to hear a shout from the direction of the road.
"Villains! Surrender!"
I jumped up and whirled around while grabbing at the spear. A short distance up the road a trio of men on horses approached the pool. All three had swords out. The leader has the point of his sword pointed at the group.
Steve was still picking up his axe as I dashed forward to get between the girls and these strangers. I kept the spear pointed skyward, but spread my feet and shifted my grip so that I could drop it at a moment's notice. "There are no villains here!" I shouted back.
"You stole that spear!" the rider to the right of the leader shouted.
"Bullshit! I found this spear in the mountains. Some patrol had been massacred and the spear was left by the attackers. You think I could steal a spear? Who told you that tall tale?" I shouted back.
"Ron," Steve said as he ran up to join me. He was holding the axe in front of his body, but maintaining a relaxed stance. "Think about it. There is only one person who could be ahead of us and knew you owned a spear. I bet he gave these men a rather detailed tale of the group."
"Oh god!" Elizabeth shouted. "Do you mean that worm actually survived the night? He's like some bloody cockroach. Nothing can eliminate him."
The riders looked uncertain. The two behind the leader lowered their sabers. The leader yanked on the reins. His horse danced into a half-turn, and then began sidestepping towards us. The leader was staring intently.
My instincts told me to lower the spear, but I held it steady as the man approached. He was just outside spear range when he halted again. I could see him scanning the group carefully. "What are you?"
"Lost travelers would be the easiest description," I replied. "We are trying to get home, but right now the only hope we have is the Wizard's Academy."
"Faint hope," I heard one of the two soldiers in the back whisper.
The leader looked more closely at me. "So you deny stealing the spear?"
I sighed. "I'm guessing that you got the tale from a man about my age, wearing clothing you'd never seen before. Clothing that was probably torn and muddy. I'm guessing it was this morning at about first light. He spun some tale of being robbed by bandits and having all his fortune stolen. If that is true, why would he complain about a spear?"
"I wondered that myself," the leader said. "His clothes were very fine. I can't imagine that he wouldn't have been carrying coin, but he said nothing about that. Just that you were a vicious bandit and should be killed without mercy or warning."
"Go for it!" Eddie shouted. "I'm tired of listening to him." There was a smack and a howl of pain.
"Shut up you fucking idiot!" I heard Lydia screech. "That man is the reason we are alive and not slaves to that psycho Roy."
The leader glanced back. "Fierce lady," he muttered.
"You don't know how fierce," Steve said softly.
It seemed we might stand there forever, but the leader looked back at his men. Once again he tugged on the reins, but this time his horse spun away from us, and he galloped the short distance back to the others, who were in the process of sheathing their swords.
Steve and I could not hear the conversation. I risked a look back at Hencktor. The man's face was white. "Who are they?" I asked.
"Road guard," Henck replied. "They protect the caravans and other travelers from bandits."
"And they probably have a license to kill anyone they decide is a bandit," I said. Hencktor confirmed this with a slow nod. Several of the girls hissed in surprise and panic, but none screamed.
I turned back to the trio. The leader had now sheathed his own sword and was reaching out to grab the reins of the horse belonging to the one soldier who had said nothing. This man was pulling something from a pouch at the front of his saddle. Once he had, he slid to the ground and started walking towards us. He had a grim smile on his face.
Steve and I stood, mutely. The man scanned our group as he walked right up to me. He stopped and looked me directly in the eye. He lifted his hands and I was surprised to find he had a board and some sheets of paper. He pulled a quill of some kind from the board. "Yes, now what will you call your company?"
"Company?" I parroted back in surprise.
"Have you no knowledge?" the man said with a frown. "You have a group of people. If you want to travel the roads you need to be identified. What are you going to be called?"
The question shocked me. I looked over at Steve, who had an equally shocked expression on his face. We stood staring at each other for a moment. I looked back at the soldier, and he had a rather impatient expression on his face, his quill tapping on the board.
My mind was still a blank when Heather behind me shouted, "Daytona Trade! Ron, let's call ourselves Daytona Trade."
Eddie gave a squawk of outrage, but I turned to the soldier
and smiled. "The lady has it. Put us down as Daytona Trade."
The man nodded. His quill twitched over the paper. He had finished writing that when he looked at me again. "And your trade will be?"
Before anyone could say a thing I whirled and looked at Al. "Muzzle Eddie!" I shouted. Eddie gave another cry of protest, but Al reacted quickly and got an arm around the man before he could start speaking. I turned back to find the soldier giving me a puzzled look.
"Sorry," I said. "That man has a habit of saying things that aren't appropriate, and I wanted to avoid confusion. We don't know what we will have to trade in each city. We are very new and right now only have what you see before you. A few packs of food and a couple of weapons to protect the ladies."
The eyebrows of the soldier rose. Behind me, Eddie was struggling with Al and trying to say something. I heard the words "girls" and "sex" come from his mouth, but nothing coherent. Steve was watching the fight and shook his head.
"That man is a menace to himself and all decent people," he moaned.
The soldier finally decided on something because his quill moved again. He pulled one paper from the pad and then reached into a belt pouch. I did not see what he picked up, but he put it on the board and wrote on it with the quill. Once he was done, he blew on it several times.
There was a short wait as the soldier watched the item on his board. Finally he appeared satisfied and picked it up to hand to me. I reached out and a square of material dropped. It was not heavy, and when I held it up I found a wooden token, covered with a number of ink marks.
"That's your road token," the soldier said. "It identifies your group and the number of people in it. It notes that you are free traders, running no regular route, and having no set cargo. Keep it with you. Now how will you pay the road fee?"
Steve and I looked at each other. I glanced at the other two soldiers and found them interested in the conversation, but clearly not going to interfere. "How much is the fee?" I asked.
"One drachma," was the reply.
I looked over at Hencktor. "Henck, is one of those silver coins I'm carrying a drachma?"