Casus Belli Ch. 15: To Mate or Not to Mate

Once the table was cleared the girls joined the males, except for Vala and Leavy, who left for the reception room, and when Yakha returned from the bathroom a couple of minutes later he sat next to Syldan, who had avoided sitting next to him again while they were having tea before. The raven-haired girl didn't react, choosing just to ignore him instead. Yakha was clearly trying to make her respond to him, and after a moment, while the group was engaged in some joyful banter, he reached out to her, and gently touched her thigh. This time Syldan did react, by getting up and leaving the living room.

Yakha just sighed, and then engaged Denora in conversation; she had witnessed what just happened and was clearly feeling sorry for him. Cassandra snuggled up against her master, also feeling sorry for Yakha, but after a moment he guided her to her feet as he got up. He said nothing, but gestured for her to follow him, and then led her towards the bedchamber, making her assume he had had second thoughts about postponing 'reclaiming' her till the evening. Bashuk ushered her inside, closed the door behind them, and then moved to the bed and sat down on its edge. Cassandra had opened up the wooden clasp of her cardigan while following him, but stopped short of removing it, as something told her there wasn't going to be a reclaiming after all, at least not yet.

He smiled softly at her and patted the comforter besides him. "Come, I need to talk with you." Cassandra sat herself down at the indicated spot and looked up at her master. "What's the score regarding tonight's mating ceremony?" he asked.

She blushed. "The girls have all made their choice, and agreed that they were all going to get mated," she answered, "but..."

"Syldan has second thoughts?" he completed her sentence.

She shrugged, "Yes and no..." Bashuk waited patiently. "She still wants Yakha, but balks at the notion of having to submit to him..." Her master nodded. "She's only willing to submit to a male that proves himself her superior in combat, even has naughty fantasies about it," Cassandra elaborated, "and I told Yakha what she desired, but..."

"But he can't give her what she wants," her master chimed in, "because she's too proficient, and he couldn't defeat her without hurting her, probably even severely hurting her. I see the problem." He chuckled, "She's rather unorcish..., for a female." Cassandra bit her lower lip. "Go fetch her," Bashuk ordered next. Cassandra nodded, and then she got up and went looking for Syldan, closing up her cardigan again, and almost feeling sorry about having to do so. As she entered the living room, she quickly established that Syldan hadn't yet returned, so she checked the small kitchen next, and then the reception room, where she found Vala and Leavy staffing the desk, as expected.

"Do you know where Syldan is?" she asked Leavy as the girl looked back at her across her shoulder. The platinum blonde shook her head.

"I saw her in the private hallway," Vala then answered, "she was heading for her bedroom I think."

Leavy frowned, "She's in trouble, isn't she?" Cassandra started shaking her head, "it's all over your face," Leavy added.

The former Kangess shrugged, "Bashuk wants to see her. He noticed her avoiding Yakha of course, and being persistent about it, and he's worried about it, that's all."

"She really likes Yakha," Vala chimed in, "she's always looking at him when she thinks no one is watching."

"It's that damned pride of hers," Leavy said, "she should just swallow it." The platinum blonde chuckled, "She has done a lot of swallowing lately anyway, Yakha's included..."

Cassandra returned to the private hallway and headed for the former maidens' bedrooms in turn, but when she knocked on the door to Syldan's room there was no response. "It's me, Syldan," she announced her presence, and then, when no answer came, she checked the door. It proved unlocked, but as she peeked inside Syldan was nowhere to be seen. Maybe she went to the bathroom, she thought, and then, after she closed the bedroom door again, she noticed a soft noise originating from further down the hallway. Of course, she thought, as she headed towards the training room. As she entered, she found Syldan on the mat, warming up, still dressed in her servant's uniform.

The girl's head turned towards her as she noticed someone entering. She was looking annoyed, but her expression softened as she recognized who had come in. "Your pack-leader wants to see you," Cassandra announced softly.

Syldan seemed surprised, "Why?" and then her expression darkened, "you didn't tell him about me and Yakha, did you?"

Cassandra sighed, "I didn't have to, he doesn't have his eyes in his pockets Syl... And when he asked me why I didn't lie to him."

"So you did tell," Syldan, said, sounding accusingly.

"Yes, I did," she answered, "and I told Yakha too, yesterday."

"You didn't!" Syldan exclaimed, sounding upset.

"What choice did I have?" Cassandra replied, "he cares about you, and he clearly wasn't grasping what was wrong. I couldn't..."

"You're forgetting your place!" the raven-haired girl almost shouted, sounding angry.

It cut deep, it cut straight into her heart. "I was only trying to help...," the pleasure slave reacted, while her head dropped.

Cassandra felt tears run down her cheeks and let out a shuddering breath in the sudden silence. After a moment a pair of arms slipped around her, and Syldan hugged her. "I'm sorry, that was such a mean thing for me to say to you, I didn't mean it," the girl whispered.

Cassandra sniffed, "I only tried to help, honestly, I love you Syl."

"I know," the raven-haired beauty replied, "I love you too Cassy, I'm so sorry." She returned the hug. "I'm making a mess, aren't I?" Syldan asked next. Cassandra shrugged, and then she nodded. "I really like Yakha," her former maiden confessed, "and I love sharing my bed with him. With the other males it's just sex, but with him... it's more than that. But I can't..., I just can't..."

There were tears running down Syldan's cheeks too now, and Cassandra hugged her fiercely. "We shouldn't make Bashuk wait," she whispered after a long moment. Syldan looked up at her, and then she nodded. They let go of each other, and then they wiped each other's cheeks. "What a pair we are...," Cassandra said with a soft smile.

As they entered the bedchamber, by way of the study this time, they found Bashuk still sitting on the edge of the huge bed. Cassandra walked up to her master and sat down next to him, in the same spot she had vacated earlier. The huge Warlord reacted by moving away from her a little, and then patting the comforter between them. Syldan swallowed, and then she moved up to the bed too, and sat down in the indicated spot. She watched her master as he studied her former maiden. "Alright," he said, "so what's going to happen this evening?"

Syldan looked up at her pack-leader, and she swallowed. "I'm not going to submit to Yakha," she then said, sounding a little anxious.

"Okay," Bashuk reacted, "and what are the other pack-girls going to do this evening?"

The raven-haired beauty shrugged, "Become pack-mates?"

The huge orc nodded, "That's what I've been told... So what happens to the remaining pack-girl then?"

"There's going to be a new round of pack-bonding?"

Bashuk slowly shook his head, "Additional rounds of pack-bonding were meant to offer uncertain pack-girls more time to choose a mate, but with five out of the six pack-girls having made their choice and committed to it already, there will be nothing left to choose anymore. So tonight you either become a pack-mate, or you become a real pack-girl." Syldan's eyes grew big, and Bashuk sighed. "This would see you sharing Yakha's bed most of the time of course." The raven-haired beauty whimpered, and Bashuk put his arm around her and pulled her against him. "Don't worry, I'm certain Yakha won't lay a hand on you if you don't want him too."

The huge Warlord gently rubbed her arm, "That male will do anything for you, except what you're demanding from him. He isn't going to run the risk of hurting you, maybe even killing you. Denying him like that wouldn't be exactly fair to him though." Syldan looked down, and then she slowly shook her head, agreeing with her pack-leader. Bashuk sighed, "Especially as there's no way we're going to be able to keep your status as a pack-girl a secret for long. And once the secret is out the first chieftain paying us a visit would probably end up being the orc deflowering you..."

Syldan's eyes grew big. "Not cooperating would force me to publicly punish you, probably even shun you." The girl whimpered anew, and Bashuk looked up at Cassandra. "Go and fetch Yakha." She just nodded, and then she got up and headed for the living room.

Cassandra found the males and the three other girls relaxing on the couches. They looked up at her as she walked up to them. "Yakha," she addressed the big orc, "your assistance is needed in the bedchamber."

The big orc grinned, "Of course..., should I bring a jar of lube?"

Cassandra frowned, and then she turned beet red as she realized what he implied, and how she had led him to it. "No!" she exclaimed, "that's not why..." Raucous laughter interrupted her, and it wasn't just the males laughing. She couldn't help chuckling, "You have dirty minds, all of you," she said accusingly.

Yakha got up, and she led him to the bedchamber while the laughter abated behind them. He followed her inside smiling, and then, as she closed the doors behind them, the smile froze on his face. "Syldan...," he said, sounding surprised, and then his voice turned worried, "is she okay?"

Syldan tried to disappear behind Bashuk, who gestured at the big male to come closer. Cassandra sat down next to Syldan once more, while Yakha stopped in front of them. The big male's expression became very concerned, and he hesitantly reached out to his favorite pack-girl, but drew back again before actually touching her. "We have a problem," Bashuk said, "she isn't capable of submitting to you, which means she'll become an official pack-girl, which will make her accessible to guests. I have a feeling that would end up with a refusal to service those guests on her part, which would then mean public punishment."

The raven-haired girl whimpered once more, and her pack-leader sighed, "If she offends a guest my hands are bound." Yakha shook his head. "There's a way out of this," Bashuk continued, "no one outside of the pack, except for Yasso and his prize, knows she's a pack-girl yet. Now we can trust Yasso and Lily, so we, as a pack, could decide to free her from her oath to the pack, and I, as its leader, could forget her earlier transgression, and being sentenced to the brothels for it. He grinned, "That was an empty threat anyway...," and then he sighed, "but there would be no way around having to shun her then."

"Shun her? Would that mean she has to leave Bromodin?" Cassandra asked, sounding upset.

"Yes," Bashuk answered.

"Nooo," Syldan wailed, pushing away from her pack-leader.

Yakha moved almost faster than the eye could follow, plucked the panicking girl from the bed, and hugged her against him. It took a second for Syldan to grasp what had happened, and then she started to struggle. Yakha responded by pulling her against him even more forcefully. "I love you!" he said loudly. Syldan stilled. "I love you," he repeated, softly this time, "I love you so much." Syldan was just staring back at him, her eyes big and wet. "You can't submit to a male who hasn't defeated you in a fair fight," Yakha said softly, "but can you submit to a male who loves you, can you submit to a male who already submitted to you?"

Syldan whimpered once more. "That's not fair...," she whispered, and then her arms and legs wrapped around her favorite male.

Yakha loosened his grip a little and started caressing the girl now clinging against him. "If I could fight you in close combat without running the risk of hurting you I would," he declared. The girl in his arms moaned softly and pulled herself against him even more fiercely. "I love you...," Yakha repeated, and then Syldan's lips found his, and they kissed.

Cassandra shuddered, wiped her cheeks, and then she found herself in the arms of her master, and snuggled up against him. "I suggest the two of you do fight," the huge Warlord then offered, "but with no hitting or kicking allowed, and with no clothes allowed either..." The couple broke off their kiss and looked at him in surprise. Bashuk chuckled, "Have a little wrestling match, to find out who's the better..."

Syldan blushed, "But..., as big and strong as Yakha is..., I wouldn't stand a chance..."

"Absolutely," Bashuk agreed with her, "you wouldn't," and then he winked, "but would you really want to win?" Syldan's blush deepened, and Bashuk got up from the bed. Cassandra followed him up, and her master looked down and winked at her, "Let's allow these two a little privacy." He locked eyes with Yakha, who was still holding Syldan. "Feel free to use the bed..." With that the huge Warlord left for the living room, with his prize following.

Nobody reacted as they entered the living room and joined the others on the couches. Bashuk patted his lap as soon as he was sitting, and his prize hopped on eagerly. At least an hour passed while they were relaxing, and then the doors to the bedchamber opened once more, and Yakha came out, cradling Syldan. Cassandra observed the surprised looks on the surrounding faces, and then the smiles emerged as they all noticed Syldan's happy face and 'out of bed' hairdo. The couple joined them, with Syldan snuggling up to her favorite male once he sat himself. Nobody said anything, and then Polly slipped from Kasho's embrace and darted over to where Syldan was sitting.

Cassandra watched the petite blonde snuggle up to the girl in silence, with Syldan just hugging her back for a moment. When she let go again Poly slipped away from her, got up from the couch, and darted towards the living room doors. "Important news needing to be spread...," Cassandra reacted with a chuckle, once the doors had closed behind the girl again.

It wasn't till lunchtime, with the entire pack gathered around the dinner table once more, that Cassandra realized how much the situation with Yakha and Syldan had subdued everyone's mood. They had 'crunchies', toasted ham and cheese sandwiches, served with a spicy tomato sauce. The orcs weren't familiar with them, but loved them, and as she was observing the pack having lunch, she noticed how the atmosphere within the group had lifted since Yakha had appeared from the bedchamber with a smiling Syldan in his arms only a short while ago. Cassandra already had her fill, but Bashuk hadn't, and she dipped the tip of another golden-brown crunchie in the small bowl of tomato sauce before presenting it to her master, who took a huge bite.

Some of the molten cheese spilled, and she wiped it from his broad chin smiling. Bashuk watched in amusement as she sucked the warm cheese from her finger, before presenting him the remainder of the crunchie. Soon the plates the crunchies had arrived on were all empty, and as Denora started to get up Yakha cleared his throat and addressed the group. "I challenged Syldan to a wrestling match," he announced, "and she accepted the challenge, under condition." He looked towards Bashuk, or at least that was what Cassandra thought he did. "The condition being that, to make the match fair, you will team up with her..."

Cassandra swallowed as she realized Yakha was actually looking at her, and not at her master. The latter laughed raucously behind her. "Condition accepted...," she heard him say.

She looked up at her master wide eyed. "What are the stakes?" Kurgan asked behind her, drawing her attention back to Yakha.

The big orc was looking at the raven-haired beauty next to him, who reached up and rubbed him beneath his broad chin. "If he loses, he'll be submitting to me at the mating ceremony, instead of the other way around," Syldan answered, her eyes twinkling.

"And if I win she'll lose her virginity on the spot," Yakha added, grinning mischievously.

"What's at stake for the other participant?" Kasho then asked, making everyone, Cassandra included, look at their pack-leader.

Bashuk grinned, "Winning will earn my prize bragging rights, and losing should get her what her teammate will be getting." He chuckled, "The problem with that is, of course, that losing shouldn't get her a reward..." Cassandra felt herself blush, while Bashuk rubbed his chin.

"No beer for a week..." Bolar offered.

Cassandra had grown fond of beer rather quickly and whimpered loudly. "Hmmm," Bashuk reacted, "Let's make that three weeks." His prize looked daggers at Bolar, and then her master ruffled her hair. "The only thing I managed to come up with as a punishment for losing was making you service that stableboy...," he said, "so if you would prefer that over going without beer for three weeks just say so..."

"No!" she exclaimed, looking up at her master, and a round of laughter resulted. She snuggled up to him pouting, and once the laughter died away, she looked up and locked eyes with Bolar, feeling guilty. The big orc just winked at her. Saved your butt there, didn't I? she could hear him think it. Cassandra managed a soft smile, which Bolar returned.

"So..., when is the match going to take place?" Kurgan asked.

"An hour from now," Syldan answered, "in the training room." She then looked towards Cassandra, and blushed, "I'm sorry, I didn't expect there would be consequences for you too..."

"It's okay Syldan," the former Kangess reacted, "it's worth it, because it's for you." She swallowed, "Even if I had ended up risking having to service that stableboy, it would still have been worth it..."

The pack had moved to the couches, half an hour had passed, and then, when Syldan got up to prepare for the match, Bashuk told Cassandra to join her. She followed the girl to her bedroom, where they both undressed. Once they were naked Syldan didn't produce their normal training gear though, but two identical shorts instead. The former Kangess lifted an eyebrow in response. "It's a wrestling match," Syldan reacted, "so we won't need protective gear, just something to protect our modesty..."

Cassandra chuckled, "I'm actually pretty used to not having my modesty protected by now..." She held up the shorts Syldan had handed her, "So pink's going to be our team color..."

They both put the shorts on, and as she righted herself again Syldan moved in and hugged her. "I haven't thanked you yet for not being mad at me..." She just returned the hug, and then they sat down on the bed and discussed wrestling. "I take it you're as unfamiliar with wrestling matches as I am?" was the first thing the raven-haired girl asked. Cassandra nodded. "No kicking and hitting, no biting and poking, and no grabbing of clothes and genitals. The winner is the one who manages to make the opponents shoulder blades touch the ground for the duration of two counts." Bashuk's prize was listening intently. "That's it," Syldan said with a shrug, "where it comes to orcish wrestling at least, and in this case Yakha will have to take both of us out to win."

"Alright," Cassandra reacted, "that's simple enough... So do we have a cunning plan?"

"Normally," the raven-haired beauty said, "Yakha shouldn't have a chance in a two to one match, but that's without counting in how awfully big and strong he is..."

The former Kangess nodded, and then she grinned, "I have this feeling it's us who aren't going to have a chance..." Syldan pouted. "We're going to give it our best shot though," she added, "but you better prepare for the worst..." The raven-haired girl blushed. "This is a win-win situation for you, isn't it?" she asked her. The blush deepened. "Do you really want for us to win," she whispered.