A Paladin's Journey Ch. 08

"This is my personal collection," Amina said as she led him inside. He was drawn in to her sapphire gaze momentarily, and she smiled. "I want you to take over its care, if you will accept."

"Amina, this is wonderful!" He replied, unable to stop himself grinning like a boy that had just been given his first kiss. "Thank you!" He found himself embracing her lush body, and she returned the hug warmly, chuckling softly in his ear. The throaty sound sent a tingle racing from his neck down to his groin, which began to harden instinctively.

"I thought you might like it," she purred. Erik wasn't sure if she meant the hug or the books.

Drawing back a little, Amina looked at him seriously. "There are things in these pages that no man or woman alive today has ever seen. It is imperative that they remain that way, at least for now, lest they be misinterpreted or misunderstood."

Erik nodded firmly. "Of course, Priestess."

"There are also things here," she continued. "That may help us to unravel some of the threats facing us. As soon as you are finished outside with the refugees, I would ask that you return here and lend that excellent mind of yours toward this end."

Erik bowed deeply, hands over his heart. "I will serve and obey."

Amina inclined her head regally. "Now, how long until you leave the Temple? I have one more task for you..."

Erik's eyes popped as her slim fingers drifted to the sash on her vaima and tugged the knot loose, allowing the filmy garment to open, giving Erik an unobscured view of her flat belly and the hairless cleft between her ripe thighs, as well as the inner slopes of her round, full breasts.

"I'm sure I have time for one more task," he found himself murmuring as he watched the robe slip from Amina's shoulders. Her smile and the glint in her eye were enough to set his blood afire even were she fully dressed.

Embarrassingly, Erik found his balls lifting and churning before he'd even had a chance to touch her, but before the inevitable ejaculation could occur, Amina took two steps and seized his head in her hands before planting her plump lips on his in a burning kiss.

His toes curled, and his cock flexed and twitched as a pleasant, warm rush flowed through him from his lips, radiating throughout his entire body. The urge to come faded somewhat, though his arousal remained as strong as ever. The kiss both relaxed and excited him, and he put one hand on her waist, just above the swell of her hip. The other he tangled gently in her golden hair, letting the silky strands slide through his fingers.

"I must be the luckiest man in the world," he whispered almost to himself when the kiss momentarily broke.

Amina's sapphire eyes searched his. "We are crawling out of a long darkness," she told him softly. "And we have only each other to rely on. It is both a daunting and special time, aronduri." Straight white teeth flashed as she smiled. "I am glad to know you, Erik."

She drew him in for another kiss, her hands deftly relieving him of his vaima as her tongue explored his mouth. He gasped against her lips as she found his aching cock and stroked it with a skill and certainty he had never had from any woman.

Aggressive lust surged in him, and with a growl he picked up the statuesque Priestess by the globes of her ass, eliciting an approving moan from her as she wrapped her silken thighs around his waist, trapping his turgid cock between their bodies. Erik could be the meek Servant all day, but there was a time for servitude, and a time for command.

Walking to the nearest wall, he pressed Amina's back against the stone in between two bookshelves, and she gasped at the cool surface against her skin. The gasp was swallowed by a passionate cry as Erik dipped his hips down and back up again, sliding effortlessly into the warm, slick confines of her sweet pussy.

Erik was now convinced that there was nothing else that compared to making love to a Priestess. The fact that it was happening at all was almost too much to comprehend without feeling dizzy. This was the second time he'd been intimate with Amina, and it was just as exquisite as the first.

He thrust against her slowly but powerfully, putting all of his weight behind each incursion into her molten core. Her breasts hitched delightfully against his chest, and her hot mouth sought his hungrily, her lips trying to devour him.

Erik plowed on steadily for long minutes, surprised that he was able to maintain this position for this long. He had always been reasonably fit, but Amina was a tall, full-bodied woman, and while you would never call her heavy, she was not slight either. Erik's arms should have been burning by now, but he felt quite comfortable.

Suddenly Amina was moving, pushing him backwards. She put her feet on the floor and turned, placing both hands on the wall and bending at the waist, keeping her long legs straight. Erik growled again in his throat as he ran his eyes over her delectable rear, the two plump globes of pale flesh ripe for his taking. The smooth lips of her pussy were visible, glistening with moisture in the light of the Sunstones. Her pink rosebud lay just above, tempting him.

She seemed to sense what he was thinking. "Take me how you desire, Erik," she purred, looking back over her shoulder at him. She wiggled her hips, teasing him.

Erik met her eyes, astounded at the way she could transition between regal and commanding to sultry and vulnerable. His hands grasped her hips firmly as he stepped in close. His aching cock slipped in between her wet thighs, but he pulled back and tilted his hips up to angle it higher, at the pink star above her pussy.

Amina pushed back eagerly, and Erik was surprised at how readily she took him. She felt tight but buttery, as if her body was somehow prepared for his entry. He watched as his meaty shaft disappeared inch by inch into her hot tunnel until his pelvis was against her ass and his balls were nestled on her pussy.

Erik began to withdraw slowly, pulling back until just the angry head of his cock was still inside her, then he pushed forward again, relishing in the sensations her clenching ass was providing.

"Yesss!" Amina drawled languidly as he began to fuck her in a similar rhythm to before. The sound of their bodies meeting filled the room with the beat of slapping flesh. The Priestess straightened her body somewhat, walking her hands up the wall, but kept her ass pushed back. She was a little taller than Erik, which gave him excellent access to her shaking tits, and his hands were on those magnificent orbs in a flash, kneading them firmly while he drilled away at her ass.

Erik leaned forward, burying his face in her hair, losing himself in this goddess of a woman who seemed to enjoy him as much as he enjoyed her. Time slowly drained from his awareness, and the magnitude of the universe compressed from distances unfathomable down to this small room lined with bookshelves.

Amina must have been doing something with her vala, because his pleasure continued to mount without peaking, growing higher and higher until his body felt like it was vibrating with delicious energy. He thought if he kept going like this, he might shatter into a million shards of light, but finally, beyond thought and reason, he sensed a shift from Amina, just as her tight ring clamped down on his pole, her inner muscles working him in waves from root to tip, coaxing his essence forward.

With a blind roar of ecstasy, Erik buried himself as deeply as he could, forcing his body hard against the Priestess's. His hands gripped her soft breasts as if they were the only things keeping him upright, which they might well have been. His back arched as his hips bucked mightily, and balls unloaded themselves into her rear channel with more force than he would have thought possible after an already busy afternoon of fucking.

Amina screamed her own release with him, her legs shaking and her ass grinding back at him as he emptied himself into her willing body.

Drained, Erik released his lover's tits and slumped down to sit on the floor, the cold stone feeling good on the warm skin of his buttocks and legs. He leaned back against a shelf, exhaling happily. "I think I could die now knowing that my life has been fulfilled," he chuckled.

"I should hope that you do no such thing," Amina chided light-heartedly as she straightened from the wall and stretched languidly. Erik's eyes wandered over her flawless body as she finished her stretch and looked around the room. "You have a large part to play in the coming years, Erik aronduri," she added, looking down at him.

Erik sighed. "And speaking of which, High Priestess, I suppose I must be off to prepare for my little excursion tomorrow." He lifted himself from the floor, half expecting his muscles to protest, but was pleasantly surprised when he rose with ease, feeling as spry as an adolescent boy.

When Amina saw him experimentally flexing and twisting his body, she laughed. "There are benefits to making love to an Arohim, Erik. Especially a Priest or Priestess."

Erik felt a cheeky grin cross his face. He felt fantastic! He was not old, by any means, but forty-five years took its toll on a man's body. Now, he doubted he'd felt this energetic when he was twenty! "I'll stick to the Priestesses, if it's all the same to you, Amina vanima. I'm sure the Priests are great, but I prefer women."

Amina laughed again at his wit. "I've no doubt of that. Perhaps one day, when she is ready, Sara and I will show you what pleasures can be gotten from being with two Priestesses at once."

Erik froze in the motion of bending down to pick up his vaima, his back bent, his hand halfway to the floor. Just the thought of a night with Sara and Amina at once sent a thrill of excitement through him.

"I see I have your attention," Amina purred. She bent to pick up her own robe, which was behind her on the floor, and she made a production of bending at the waist right in front of him, putting her ass and pussy on full display and taking her sweet time about it.

Erik hardened again as he fumbled with the sash on his robe. Amazing how simple tasks became so difficult around a woman like Amina. "Have mercy, Priestess!" He pleaded with a laugh, his erection now protruding obscenely beneath the knot in the sash. "If you continue like this, I'll never leave this room!"

Straightening gracefully, Amina half-turned back to him, eyeing him coyly through some stray strands of golden hair. "Very well," she breathed hotly. "You are released, Erik arondur. But be warned: at present, you are the only available man in the Temple, with young Tavish in training. You will be popular in the coming days."

Erik inclined his head respectfully. "And I will serve as I am needed, Priestess, until my body fails or my heart gives out." He meant that as a joke, but a small part of him wondered how much sex he could actually stand?

"Let us hope that does not happen, child," Amina said with a smile. "In fact, you will find that you have more stamina and energy every day that you are here. It is the gift of the Arohim to the Aronduri, a small something in exchange for your service and loyalty."

Erik had a thousand questions spin through his mind. How was the gift given? When did it start? Was it passed down through bloodlines of Servants like it was Arohim? No. Now was not the time. Duty called. "I would ask for more of your time, Priestess, once I return, if you see fit."

"Of course," she replied sincerely, leaning in to brush his lips with a kiss.

"Thank you for your wisdom, your healing, and your love." Erik intoned formally as he bowed again and turned to leave. Before he could take a step, Amina caught his sleeve.

"Take care out there," she warned, her beautiful face suddenly serious. "And watch over Sylvia. She is clever and capable, but young and hot-blooded." Her eyes seemed to turn inward for a moment. "There is something stirring to the south, but I dare not use my vala to find it; it would make us a beacon in the night for the Heralds. Aran and Henley will have to handle it, whatever it may be."

Erik nodded. "I will be cautious, Priestess. And we will return safely." She released his sleeve, and he left, heading for his rooms, wondering what it was Amina could sense to the south.

***

***ARAN -- The Emerin Forest, Ekistair***

The sky was still an indigo blanket dotted with shining points when Aran first sensed the outlying trees of the Emerin up ahead. The moon was an upturned sliver of a crescent, and it offered little light for the bedraggled crowd that rode or walked behind him. Most of the men had insisted the women ride in the carts for safety, despite Aran's assurances that there would be no further attacks this night. Some of the Rostiners were looking at him strangely, since he'd said that, and Aran couldn't blame them. If Aran could sense Darkspawn, why hadn't he known the Goblins were coming in the first place? He'd kicked himself for saying anything, but the soup couldn't be put back in the pot, now.

Some of the women had agreed to ride in cart or wagon, while others had succeeded instead in making their husbands ride due to injuries or fatigue. They were good people, these Rostiners. They cared for their own. Kedron was in one of the wagons, sleeping off that lump on his head, and no doubt Lena was with him. Aran wasn't sure what to do about that. The girl was obviously responding to Kedron's vala, as well as Aran's and Smythe's, despite the fact that they were trying to keep it suppressed at all times. She seemed particularly receptive to the Arohim, for some reason. None of the other Rostin women had done more than cast them the odd smile.

Thinking back to the Goblin attack, Aran knew it was a miracle that only three of the Rostiners died. It was also a stroke of very bad luck that a band of Goblins had just happened along. Smythe had expressed concern, and was convinced it was no coincidence when combined with the Troll ordeal from a week or so back.

Aran had to agree. Something was waking these creatures up. Maloth? Or something else? 'Aros,' he prayed silently. 'Please refrain from adding yet another threat to my plate.'

One upside from the attack was that the three captive Heralds had escaped, which was more or less to plan. Smythe had done a quick search around the hollow and seemed confident that they'd taken off north as fast as they could run. How long would it take them to reach Berrigan? And how far south had Berrigan ridden already?

Kedron had said nothing about Imella's condition apart from the fact that she was still scared. At least they weren't whipping her again.

On the approach to the woods, the trees were thin, at first, smaller and less significant than their brothers in the forest proper, but they quickly grew larger the further south you went, and the waist-high grasses of the plain gave way to mulched earth.

Aran felt knots loosen in his shoulders that he hadn't known were there as the party of three dozen villagers, two Paladins and an apprentice disappeared into the sheltering shadows of the Emerin Forest.

"You still haven't told me where we're going, Anarion," Smythe muttered from his right as they navigated the thickening foliage. It would be time to dismount, soon, at least until they found a road or a track.

"I wish you wouldn't call me that," Aran told the bigger man. The term meant 'Son of the Sun.' It was grandiose and pompous, and reminded Aran of when the other children had made fun of his last name when he was growing up. The name 'Sunblade' in a rural village really stood out.

Was that a smirk on Smythe's face? The man's mustaches made it hard to tell. "I know you hate it," Smythe replied honestly. "But you haven't said anything for an hour, and I was wondering if you are alright."

Aran glanced at the other Paladin. "You have a strange way of showing concern, my friend. You could have just asked."

Smythe shook his head, his long dark hair swinging behind his head. The leather cord around his temples kept it from getting in his face. "I've tried three times, Aran," he said quietly. "And each time you ignored me."

"Forgive me, brother," Aran replied absently. "That was rude of me." He thought back a little. It was true. He really had been lost in his thoughts since they'd left the camp in the hollow. In fact, he hadn't felt right since he'd tapped into his vala so intensely. What was it that bothered him so? The dead? Surely not the Goblins he'd had to kill; he'd had no choice, there. Besides, they were Darkspawn. No, it was something much more dreadful.

"I made you afraid," he whispered, staring straight ahead. He guided Strider without really thinking about it, and instead of the trees he saw Smythe's face, the look in his eyes as he watched Aran standing atop the wagon. It wasn't terror, or panic; Smythe would never give in to those emotions. It was the way you looked at a wild animal you'd never seen before; not sure if you should run or play dead or attack.

Smythe cleared his throat and shifted in his saddle, more uncomfortable than Aran had ever seen him. "Maybe a little." He admitted. "I've never seen power like that, man. I was not sure if you would still be you afterwards. That sort of thing can change a fellow." He took a big breath, his deep chest puffing outwards before he exhaled. "I knew you were strong, Aran, but what you showed back there was monstrous." After a moment, he tentatively added, "How did it feel?"

Aran considered what Smythe said. Was it really that much power? Surely Amina could access that much if she desired, couldn't she? Somehow, Aran already knew the answer to that question. "It felt like a storm a hundred miles wide," he told Smythe truthfully, meeting the man's eyes. "And I was at the heart of it. I felt like I could have walked into Maralon and brought the Heralds to their knees with a glance. It was... exhilarating."

Smythe watched him while he spoke, then nodded. "I'm sure it was. It would truly be something, to have that much of Aros' power in the palm of your hand..." He went quiet for a moment, then shook his head as if to clear it. "But be careful, ey? I don't reckon anybody has been as strong as you, maybe not even Armas Dorne himself."

"Well," Aran said more brightly than he felt. "It's a good thing I have solid friends around me, no?" Smythe grinned and seemed to relax a bit.

"Oh," Aran added. "The Chapel."

"Ey?" Smythe grunted, a thick eyebrow raised.

"You asked me where we're headed. We're going to the Chapel. Elaina's Chapel."

"Ha!" Smythe barked. "A bath it is for me!"

Aran couldn't agree more. He couldn't decide who smelled better; himself or Strider. "It's the best place for the people to rest safely until this is all over."

"I'd better go find us a road, then!" Smythe announced buoyantly. "It won't do for these carts to come apart on this shitty ground."

"We'll wait here," Aran said, reining in and raising his hand to signal a halt. "No need to risk any more horses tonight."

At that, the big Paladin turned Thunder off to the right and trotted away into the trees, quickly vanishing out of sight.

It would be good to see the Chapel again. Fond memories of Elaina drifted through his mind as he dismounted Strider and looped the reins loosely over a nearby branch. Aran made his way back down the disorganized line of villagers, offering a kind word here, or a hand down from a cart there. He told them to rest for a bit, until Smythe came back with the whereabouts of the nearest road.

A short time later, Smythe returned to lead them onward, and the party soon found itself on a narrow cart path that led them deeper into the fabled forest. Aran remembered the stories from his childhood, the legends that were told about the dark and dangerous Emerin forest. He smiled as he realised that many of them were true, in some fashion.