Carnival of the Soul

by Cebelius

  "Oh f-fuck! Yes ... yesss .... Mmph, that's s-soo good ..."

  She shivered under him, then sighed and relaxed as he settled atop her, twisting just enough to lift her head and kiss the underside of his jaw while gazing up at him with rapt adoration. Then she licked him, tasting his sweat, and when he glanced down into her wide green eyes she asked, "Again?"

  "You'll have to give me a minute," he grunted, and shifted to roll off of her.

  Kalty immediately twisted around and before he could say anything else she took his shaft past her lips and suckled strongly at it, her tongue bathing every inch of him in liquid heat and sensation.

  He groaned and his hips tightened, but she clutched at him and refused to let him go, sucking him with abandon. There was no grace or delicacy in it now; she wanted what she wanted, and intended to get it.

  After a few minutes, his semi-hard shaft went rigid again, and she slurped up his length and left a trail of saliva across the head of him as she shifted again, her back to him as she positioned herself gleefully over his hips.

  Kalty set him where she wanted him, and then sank down, inch by agonizing inch, moving slowly as she buried his shaft in her ass.

  When her hips finally rested on his, she wiggled delightfully and laid back against him, sighing as she said, "Ooh, I love that feeling. So full ..."

  Terry wrapped an arm around her belly and dropped the other between her thighs, cupping her as he squeezed. Kalty's lips parted and she groaned softly, and he started to roll his fingers as she rhythmically tightened around his shaft.

  They stayed like that for a time, not really moving. The hot, snug feel of being buried in her ass was more than enough to keep him at attention, and eventually the proofs of her pleasure and the remains of his dribbled down over him, tickling him a bit.

  "I can see why Shy likes you so much," Kalty murmured after a while, tilting her head back to look at him out of the corner of one eye. "You're so attentive."

  "Of all the girls involved with me, I find it interesting you've only mentioned her," Terry said, careful to make his comment an observation, not a question.

  "Mmm, I've been watching you. Get used to that, by the way. Oracles tend to look for templates. I'm sure you can imagine why."

  Terry chuckled. "Yeah, you're all perverts."

  Kalty laughed, which did amazing things to the connection between them, and lifted a hand back to stroke his cheek as she said, "That too. We all like to watch ..."

  She ground over him for a while and he teased her sex, but only lazily. Neither of them wanted to finish too soon. Eventually she said, "Shy Willow has been of particular interest to me. I always hoped she would find happiness. She first came to my attention at the Gentry Academy where she lived. I taught there for a time, but moved on well before the Zone began to encroach. She's a pleasant girl, very nurturing, and not at all aloof, which makes her unusual for her kind. I'm glad she finally found someone to fall in love with."

  Questions poured into Terry's mind, and he gritted his teeth. He couldn't even ask her if what she was doing was deliberate, because that too would be a question.

  "You're being mean," he murmured instead, and tipped his head up a bit to bite her ear. It was playful, but she let out a tiny squeal and her whole body tightened on him.

  "Please," she gasped, shivering. "Be gentle with my ears. They're really ... really sensitive."

  He let her go and reached up with his free hand, gently stroking the fur on the back of her ear where he'd bit her as he kept his other hand busy between her thighs.

  She seemed to melt into him, laying her head back over his shoulder. "That was mean, I'm sorry. I usually try and trick people into asking foolish questions. Old habits. Shy is one of the good ones, Terrence. We were once ... acquainted. Take good care of her."

  "I'll tell her about you then, she'll appreciate knowing we met," Terry said, careful with his phrasing.

  "It's best if you don't," Kalty said breathily, her hips wriggling over his. "Let's keep this ... just between us."

  "Fair enough."

  Terry lowered his hand over her belly again and then rolled, putting her face down in her nest of blankets and pillows and settling his weight on her as he took control.

  Kalty grunted and shivered, and her little cotton ball tail tickled his stomach as she arched her hips, giving him the angle she wanted as he started to thrust.

  They'd been lazy for the better part of twenty minutes, and he felt a growing need to finish. He covered her completely, knees anchored inside hers as he fucked her deeply, and felt her fingers as she slipped them between her thighs and began working frantically.

  "So good to me ... I love feeling you on top like this," she murmured.

  He didn't say anything. Nothing needed to be said. Her ass was plush and felt amazing under his hips, and her insides squeezed and nursed on his shaft with increasing pressure as she got close.

  Terry did his best to hold off until she was ready, but didn't quite make it, cumming hard with a strangled grunt as he settled over her, pressing her down with all his weight.

  Just as his own orgasm was beginning to recede, hers began and she jerked, quivered, then moaned in pleasurable release underneath him.

  "Hah ... I ... really needed that," she said after a moment's recovery. He rested atop her and she seemed to soak it up. She still sounded half-drunk with pleasure. "Thank you, Terrence."

  He shifted off of her and she made a sound of vague complaint and turned, curling into his side and molding her body to his as she pressed a hand to his chest.

  "For your seed I owe one thing, but for the unexpected pleasure and skill with which you gave it I owe another," she said softly. "I will give you a phrase. If, when the time is right, you repeat this phrase, you will save yourself much pain and loss. 'A cut ... for a cut.' Ask no questions, simply remember."

  Terry didn't even pretend to understand, but he could follow instructions. "I will remember."

  She smiled dreamily.

  "You gave me seven, did you know? I will leave you one. He's proud to help his father. Maybe someday ... We'll see each other ... again." she murmured, leaning up to kiss the underside of his jaw.

  Then, just like that, she vanished.

  Terry blinked, twisted to look, and something slipped off his chest where her hand had been.

  He picked it up and stared at it curiously.

  It was a wooden token, engraved with the the profile of a rabbit. The fact that the engraving reminded him of the Playboy logo made him chuckle, but it was exactly what he needed.

  Kaltes-Ekwa had kept her promise. She'd left him a soul token.

  23

  Talk is Cheap

  It was dawn on the second day since the Council meet, and Laila Rise was seated outside her yurt, outwardly tranquil as she inwardly fumed.

  Her plans had been elegant, her instructions simple and impossible — or so she'd thought — to mess up. Yet the template's harem had left the Temujin section of the carnival yesterday at noon and had apparently made camp almost two miles to the north. Yesun Tege had not only not been killed as planned, but his assassins had failed utterly to thin the ranks of Terry Mack's women.

  Lee-anne Sunset, on the other hand, had vanished, without a trace, and the Lone Tree herd was getting frantic as they searched for her.

  Laila had been forced several times to claim she knew nothing of where Lee-anne might have gone, and had stretched the bounds of the truth as far as she dared. She had not told the other woman explicitly to take Yesun's life, but she hadn't had to. The two had worked together for years, and understood each other well.

  The only silver lining to the disaster her plans had become was the fact that the one shaman among the assembled herds with oracular skill had also vanished.

  If she had not, there would be uncomfortable questions when it became common knowledge that Lee-anne was shielded from scrying.

  The Lone Tree matron had been one of Laila's most cherished cov
en members, and her all-but-certain loss was a great blow. She had always done everything exactly as asked, had never failed to accomplish her objectives, and now she was gone. Gone along with her was Laila's hold over the Lone Tree herd, for Lee-anne's likely successor had long been suspicious of Laila and would not be likely to want to continue with the old arrangements.

  This is a proper mess, she mused, though none of her turbulence showed on the surface. Her mask of tranquility was over a hundred years old, and the strength of long habit kept all but the most violent emotions from showing.

  She glanced up and around, but Yesun had yet to appear. She had invited him to break his fast with her, and such an invitation was not lightly ignored.

  Yesun had made overtures a few years back that Laila had pretended not to understand, but that had made it clear he was interested in an alliance. He was ambitious. In fact, he was too ambitious, and if Laila brought him into her confidence she knew that in time he would use knowledge of her machinations against her.

  Perhaps it is time for Laila Rise to disappear as well, she thought, taking another spoon of porridge as she continued to wait for Yesun. I can always reappear in another herd and rise again. Baba's gift gives me all the time I could ever need. The template though ... an opportunity like that may never come again.

  A tiny frown appeared on her face, but she wiped it quickly away as one of her ears swiveled, catching the sound of approaching hooves. A heavy, confident step.

  She smiled warmly as she set her bowl aside and stood, but Yesun wasn't smiling, and didn't start when their eyes met.

  "Laila," he said perfunctorily, his eyes as hard as flint chips.

  "Yesun, good morning! Would you like a bowl?" Laila asked, gesturing toward the pot and keeping her own tone friendly and open.

  The minotaur hesitated just long enough for Laila to notice, then grunted his assent and had a seat on one of the stumps set out for the purpose.

  She spooned up a bowl of porridge and handed it to him. He accepted it and a spoon, took a bite, then a second before nodding once and saying simply, "This is good."

  "Of course. I wouldn't invite you for bad food," Laila agreed pleasantly.

  "I've been hearing things," Yesun said between bites. "I should say up front, I didn't attend the council fire."

  "Ah."

  Laila nodded thoughtfully, then said, "Several things have become a bit clearer."

  "I'm missing several members of my herd," Yesun added. "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

  "I might," she said quietly, not bothering to try and dissemble. He clearly suspected her of foul play, and it was best to lead him away with shades of truth rather than subtle lies.

  "I figured," he grunted around another bite. "What can you tell me."

  "First, I should ask what you know of the content of the council you did not attend?" Laila asked.

  At first, Yesun didn't answer. He took his time spooning the last of the porridge into his mouth, smacked his lips, and quirked an eyebrow at her. Laila poured him a mug of honeyed wine, which he accepted, downing it in a single long draught before sighing and belching in contentment.

  Then he spoke.

  "Why don't you summarize for me."

  Inwardly seething, Laila was nevertheless the picture of composure as she said, "It was suggested that since the template falls under the accords as communal property, steps might be taken to ensure that he was in a position to be properly handled when he returned."

  She paused just long enough to be sure she had Yesun's attention before adding, "Of course, in the end, we agreed to seek his voluntary cooperation."

  "Of course," Yesun said dryly. "My questions are answered."

  He stood up abruptly, and Laila made a series of quick decisions, the first of which was to bring Yesun into the fold. Things might too easily spiral out of control otherwise.

  "There is a rumor that one of the template's females has the ability to ... copy other people. I wonder if you might be willing to undergo a simple test to ensure you are not that person?" Laila asked.

  Yesun glowered at her, frankly suspicious as he asked, "What sort of test?"

  "The magical kind."

  "I'll need to summon my second. I won't submit myself to any magic without witnesses."

  "By all means, call him."

  She suspected Yesun's second was close to hand, and her suspicion was justified a moment later when the Temujin simply raised his head and bellowed.

  A moment later, a second minotaur rounded the corner, then two more. The three arranged themselves with two standing several feet behind Yesun while the third — lacking all subtlety — came to stand directly behind Laila. All three were armed and armored, and the threat was as overt as possible.

  Laila's expression never wavered as she sweetly asked, "Are you now secure enough to submit to my test?"

  Yesun folded his arms across his broad chest and waited, watching her as he made no effort to hide the distrust in his eyes.

  Laila slipped a small vial from a loop in the belt at her waist, then stood with a sigh as she came to stand in front of Yesun and said, "Please hold out your hand."

  Yesun did as asked. Laila carefully unstoppered the vial and tipped a few sanguine drops of the contents onto his palm. She then recorked the container and slipped it in back into place as she hovered a hand over Yesun's and spoke careful words of magic.

  The blood shimmered slightly, but otherwise remained unchanged.

  Satisfied, Laila said, "That's it. You may wipe it away."

  "What did you do?" he asked.

  "I merely conducted a test to see if the blood in that container matches blood you have spilled. It does not."

  "Whose blood?" Yesun asked.

  "Lee-anne Sunset."

  The minotaur's eyes narrowed, and Laila tipped her head and looked up at him with an easy expression as she said, "She was last seen in your company."

  "I don't think I've ever met her," Yesun replied.

  "Still, there were witnesses, of whom I am one. She was last seen walking the camps with you. Now, perhaps you understand what kind of difficulty we face, and just what kind of trouble you may be in."

  "I am in no trouble," the minotaur said sourly. "I will speak before a truth-sayer if anyone has doubts."

  "In this particular case it would be an open question whether even that would allay suspicion. You were seen at the council, and you left in both my and Lee-anne's company."

  Yesun's expression, already unfriendly, turned hostile. Laila gazed into his eyes for a moment, letting him see her unfazed, then said, "Fortunately for you, I am willing now to vouch that Lee-anne's blood is not on your hands. Aren't you glad that I thus protect your reputation?"

  Yesun's brow furrowed, then he scowled and nodded. "I was ... assaulted. Magic was used, but I cannot say more. I slept the night through, and when I woke I heard tell of my liaison with the Lone Tree herd matron. You can imagine my surprise. Then I learned of the departure of the template's party, and soon after of several key members of my herd who turned up missing."

  "Between the missing matron and your own vanished people, along with the timing of the template's party leaving, we have enough to bring before the council," Laila said. "I suggest we do so."

  "To what purpose?" Yesun asked.

  "In a case like this, isn't it obvious? We can't let a template go unused. With that unstoppable beast rampaging in the north we need all the power we can wring from him. His women serve as his protectors. They are manifestly not willing to share. We should replace them."

  Yesun's aura of overt antagonism faded, and he seemed to be chewing on the inside of his lip as he thought.

  "The new camp they've set is at the top of a small rise. Clear view of the carnival and in every other direction. They will see us coming."

  "Let them," Laila said easily. "What are they going to do? Refuse us? There are over a million head within a hundred square miles. If they attack the carnival
the entire population of the Steppe will mobilize against them."

  "That being the case, why should we attack at all?" Yesun asked. "Wait to see if the template reappears. If he does, we can make our demand at that time. If he doesn't, and these women are as competent as I have heard, we could take grievous losses for no gain."

  "Have you forgotten that he has a Nightmare at his beck and call?" Laila asked. "Once he reappears, he can effortlessly slip through our fingers with her. No. If we want any hope of compelling the template to aid us, we have to have control over at least some of the key members of his harem before he returns from the Wildervast."

  Yesun frowned, and Laila began to wonder if — somehow — Lee-anne hadn't been killed, and the minotaur in front of her was the imposter. The spell she'd used would have turned the blood black if the man in front of her had murdered Lee-anne. Whoever this was, her blood wasn't on his hands, but he wasn't acting as Laila had anticipated.

  Then again, I thought he'd done exactly as I expected the night of the council fire, and that wasn't him.

  Laila wished she knew more about her antagonist. She had seen it as a globule of ruby red, had seen it ripped from the surface of the template, and had later seen two of the dryad. One of those must have been a copy. But she didn't know what the creature actually was.

  If it were a ruby slime it wouldn't be able to hold a shape for long, or change its color. We are dealing with something else. Something worse.

  "If we're going to do anything large scale, we need the support of the other herds."

  Yesun's comment brought Laila's attention back to him, and their eyes met as he went on. "I sent word that I would be meeting you here, and notified the others that something strange is going on. They all know that I claim I wasn't at the council. You can't be the only one who noticed this shapeshifter. My best protection at this point is to be in public, and that my story is told and corroborated. By you. There will be another council in two hours. If you want to move on the template's women, be there."