Fourth Vector Ch. 13

Lina managed a polite smile although she was seething on the inside. That was hardly such a matter for him to joke about as she knew the fate of the girls who were thrown out of the palace harem. It wasn't worth it for one girl to gain too much power over the others, and as Lina evaluated the new arrival, she saw a very real threat to her position.

We can't have that, now can we?

"You girls enjoy the rest of your night," said Vertulis before applying another heavy smack against Nadira's ample bottom. The woman nearly yelped before scampering back into the pens, the metal bars closing with a heavy creak. The king was quick on his feet as he headed back to his chambers, soon disappearing from sight and sound.

Nadira groaned as she rubbed her ass once more. "I wish he'd quit doing that," she grumbled as she rested against the bars.

"It's your own fault, you know?" said Lina with a chuckle. "If you didn't lead with your ass, he wouldn't give it so much attention."

"If I didn't lead with my ass, I'd never see any attention," said Nadira. "I'd be like poor, fat Ralah, never seeing any requests from the king. How she still stays here is beyond me." Nadira gestured to an older woman on the other side of the harem who was sleeping peacefully.

"Ralah stays because she's no threat to anyone," said Lina. "But you are right about one thing. In here, attention is power." Her gaze turned back to the blonde woman, a snarl forming on her lips.

"You're thinking about the new addition again, aren't you?" questioned Nadira. "Do you think the king means what he says?"

"He's nearly done it before when a beautiful whore gets put in the pens," said Lina. "Even though he's a man of many tastes, he's prone to focusing on the beautiful and exotic. That blonde is certainly exotic for Andalucia."

"I'd be more tolerant of her if she wasn't so quiet all the time," said Nadira with a sour face. "She acts like she's too good to be a whore."

"Not everyone is so readily accepting of their fate," said Lina. "If I recall correctly, you took a long time for them to break in as well."

Nadira shrugged. "At least I was friendly with the other girls. It's probably the reason I'm still here."

"And it's the reason why she won't be," said Lina. "I don't like the way he looks at her. When she's fully trained to start entertaining the king, all of us won't see action for weeks."

"Do you really think it would be that bad, Lina?"

The older woman nodded. "I know the king and his tastes. I've been here longer than anyone, remember? That blonde is a threat to all of us."

"Then let's slit her throat in the darkness and be done with it," said Nadira with a simple shrug. "It's not like other whores in the past haven't met similar ends."

"Believe me, the thought has crossed my mind already," said Lina. "But with how he looks at her, he'd be enraged to find her so callously disposed of. We'd need to be more subtle about it."

"Any suggestions then?"

"I'm still thinking about it," said Lina with a defeated tone. "But one thing is certain, we willnot let her steal the attention of the king."

Nadira started to laugh and walked closer to Lina. "That's what I love about you. You're such a delightfully evil bitch that I can't stand it."

Lina let out a girlish giggle. "Only you would make something that normally sounds so terrible sound so good."

"You know what else would sound so good right now?" asked Nadira as she pressed her body against Lina's. "Some of your tongue-lapping against my cunt."

Lina grinned and kissed the other woman. Part of her position as the official "wife" of the harem was taking care of the other girls. And Lina always made sure they were well taken care of. It was part of her preference anyway, the older woman enjoying the taste of menand women. It was just another way for her to assert her authority over the rest of the girls—her way of taking care of them and showing them who maintained the integrity of the harem. It also didn't hurt that she loved the taste of them especially after they'd just laid with the king.

"I'm not sure I should indulge your request," said Lina as soon as she pulled away from the kiss. "I haven't gotten a taste of the king in over a week."

Nadira put one foot on a chair in front of them, her legs spread apart while she swiped a hand between them. "Good for you, I have plenty of the king that you can taste right here. Surely you don't want all of this to go to waste." Her hands glistened with the seed of the king, thick and viscous in quality.

Lina grabbed the woman's fingers and brought them to her mouth, taking in the sweet and tangy taste of the man they called king. She lathered her tongue over Nadira's fingers, making sure every drop of his seed slipped down her throat.

"I know how much you love the taste of him," whispered Nadira. "Why don't you get it straight from the source?"

Lina sucked all of her fingers dry before giving a sultry look to Nadira. "Sit down on the chair and spread your legs."

Nadira giggled before following the order, leaning back against the chair as her legs spread out wide before the older woman. Lina gazed longingly as the woman's slit, red and juicy from her recent activities. She could just barely detect a whisper of silvery discharge that coated her lips, soon to be filling her belly.

Lina slipped between her legs, her eyes feasting on the completely shaven snatch in front of her. Nadira was quite different from herself, preferring to stay on the shaven side instead of keeping her more natural, furry disposition.

The older woman brought her fingers to Nadira's slick entrance, cupping her pussy and scooping out another healthy amount of discharge. "He really filled you tonight. You are positively filled to the brim with his semen."

"He really rode me hard, Lina. The poor man was so pent-up with frustration that he let it all loose in my cunt." Lina delivered a small smack against her pussy, the wetness making a delightful sound.

Lina's tongue slipped out to taste the spent seed, gathering a heavy dollop on her tongue and swallowing it whole.

"How do we taste, love?" purred Nadira.

Lina moaned. "Positively delightful. I could feast on the two of you for hours and never be sated."

Nadira started to giggle. "Lucky for you, I think you'll get your fill with all that's down there."

Lina gave a sultry grin before her tongue slipped out and slid between the girl's slick folds. Nadira's head fell back, her hands reaching up to her tits to caress them, kneading and pinching the supple flesh. "I so love how you lick me. Not a single one of the other girls takes the time to tease and explore like you do."

Lina looked up at her. "I've picked up several tricks over the years I've been here. I've been eating cunt since you were suckling at your mother's breast."

Nadira let out a low moan as she smacked her clit again. "Keep going, please? I'd like to have at least one orgasm tonight."

"My pleasure." Lina snuck her tongue between the woman's folds once more, lapping against her shaven snatch as if it was their last night together. Of all the girls in the pens, she'd always enjoyed the sweet, tangy taste of Nadira the best. Perhaps it was why the two women were so close. There had only been one other woman in the pens throughout Lina's life that tasted better than the cunt in front of her, and that poor girl was kicked out after three weeks when the king was done with her. Lina had learned to make due with what she had.

And Nadira's pussy was especially sating.

A quick glance up to the younger woman found her panting heavily, her eyes closed as her teeth jutted out to bite her lip. Nadira's fingers were making delicate pinches of her engorged nipples, the flesh being teased into a stiff arousal. Lina grinned against her shaven cunt, taking a few moments to tease her by fingers and tongue.

"Oh, right there," moaned Nadira as one tongue-lashing passed over her hooded nub. "Tease my clit."

"You mean right here?" Lina stuck her tongue against it and flickered the hot button, waiting for Nadira's body to shudder at the contact. She didn't disappoint, soon grinding her lower half against the older woman's mouth.

Nadira grabbed hold of her own hair and tossed it over her shoulder. With her now free hand, she grabbed the base of Lina's neck, holding her in place against her lower half. It was obvious the younger woman was completely worked up, her labia open and waiting for more attention. The discharge coming from them was still almost silver in color, a mixture of her own juices and the king's spent force.

Lina turned her attention away from her clit and moved her tongue down to the woman's moist opening, lapping up the sweet juices emanating from her well-fucked hole. She moved her tongue with force, lashing and flickering against the opening before sliding inside and teasing Nadira's slippery walls.

"Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck. Right there, Lina," panted Nadira as she applied more pressure against Lina's head.

Nadira wasn't the only one that was completely drenched. Lina resisted the urge to drop a hand between her own thighs, having to make due with rubbing her clit against the leg of the chair in front of them. It was a terrible compromise, one which she hoped Nadira would rectify soon.

"You're going to make me cum. Fuck, Lina, keep licking me right just like that. Fuck, so good. So talented. Lick my cunt." Nadira started to squirm in her chair, buckling her hips as Lina's attentions became more vigorous.

Just when she was about to give up hope, Nadira leaned forward and cupped her own pussy, slipping her hand between her hairy snatch and the leg of the chair. "You're positively dripping, Lina," purred Nadira with a honeyed voice. "It seems you need some attention as well."

Lina whimpered against her cunt. She only said one word. "Please."

Nadira moaned and threw her head back as her fingers slid through the woman's dark pubic hair and into her wetness. Lina let out a low hiss at the intrusion, her tongue finding a renewed effort to please the younger woman. Both of them worked in tandem, no doubt an interesting sight for the other girls as they writhed together in pleasure. Lina was so turned on that it wouldn't take long for her to achieve release, Nadira's talented fingers already finding a steady groove as they worked her cunt. The younger woman was moaning loudly now, causing Lina to wonder if even the king earned such a performance from the younger whore.

She wouldn't last much longer. In a stunning display of feminine glory, Nadira's hips buckled as she finally achieved orgasm, Lina noticing a heavier quantity of sweet fluids filling her mouth and splashing against her chin as Nadira rode the waves of pleasure. She kept up steady pressure on her clit to help get her through the orgasm as Nadira's fingers took a temporary break due to lack of control. Lina resisted the urge to whimper in frustration, awaiting the other woman's recovery.

"That was just what I needed," said Nadira, her eyes popping open with glassy satisfaction as soon as she recovered.

"I'm so happy I could please you," said Lina with a giggle.

"Speaking of pleasing, I believe I have a job to finish?" Her fingers once more moved with alarming frequency in Lina's cunt. Lina shuddered and squeezed them with her slick walls, leaning back to allow the younger woman better access. Nadira pumped her pussy with experienced fingers, knowing just the right combination to get her off in the shortest amount of time. It was a clinical approach to the matter but Lina wasn't one to complain. An orgasm was an orgasm no matter what way it was achieved. Soon enough, she was moaning loudly herself, her body flushing a deep red as the waves of pleasure finally found her.

"I do so enjoy our nights together," said Nadira as she pulled her fingers out of the older woman and sucked them clean, one by one.

"That makes the two of us," said Lina with a content sigh. She looked back over to the other girls, taking note of who watched their performance and who kept their attention elsewhere. Unsurprisingly, she noticed the blonde woman now sleeping in her position, her back turned to them, completely oblivious to her malice intent. How easy it would be to slip a knife between those dainty shoulder blades.

"You already look to be scheming," said Nadira with a puff of her cheeks.

Lina shot her a wicked grin. "I think I just had an idea."

*****

"We lost more men in the night, Clan Chief. Another twenty warriors are dead or wounded."

Jack nodded glumly as he listened to the morning report from Samir. It had been two more days since the night attack by theSciavo, and Jack's forces continued to move on a southerly course, avoiding being hemmed in by at least five separate clans as well as the elite slave hunters. On all but one side, they shadowed his movements and prevented any further penetration of the country. There was only one direction to go with their less numerous forces, and that was to the coast.

"What about theMuthada? Any reports from them?" asked Jack.

Abel stepped forward to speak next. "It was quiet in our sector last night, Clan Chief. A few of your own warriors fired out into the night but we recorded no attacks or casualties."

"At least there's one bright spot to that. We'll continue toward the coast again today. Keep the three main groupings and keep moving south," said Jack as he then turned to Greg and the two marine captains nearby. "How many marines are left able to fight?"

"At this morning's count, we're down to 109 effectives, almost half strength," said Greg. "I have eleven men still wounded. There's roughly thirty-five men on each flank and in the center of our forces to augment theMuthada and theNumratha."

Jack pursed his lips. They'd lost nearly a quarter of their strength since landing in Andalucia. Even though the marines killed more than ten men each for every one of them lost, he was tired of putting them in jeopardy. It was time to get off this island.

"We'll just need to keep moving and not let them drag us into any more engagements," said Jack. "I've already radioed out to theDestiny and theTiger. They have our coordinates on the shore and will rendezvous with us there. I'd estimate we should reach the coast tomorrow."

"What about Kat?" asked Greg. "Are we going to leave her here for the time being?"

Jack let out a sigh. "Unfortunately, our current strength is not enough to get us back to the capital for her rescue. We have to find another way."No matter how much it pains me.

"Do you think we could expect reinforcements any time soon?" the major asked. "It makes me nervous to continue to fight at half strength."

"We are supposed to be receiving reinforcements, but that was before the Occitanian threat to Quiller's Cove," said Jack. "Now, I'm not sure. It'll depend on if they're needed there."

"We could make the argument they're just as needed here for our mission," said Abigail quietly.

"I agree with you, Abigail. But we'll have to wait for Bancroft to make that order. I just hope that's sooner rather than later."

"And us, Clan Chief?" asked Samir before gesturing to himself and Abel. "What of theMuthada andNumratha clans? What are we to do when you reach your ships?"

Jack didn't answer right away. It was one of those questions that he'd been hoping not to confront just yet. Even though both clans had been decimated by the war, the majority of the dead were still the men, their warriors. A good portion of their families were still intact, most of them stationed around the center and protected by the groups on the flank. There just wasn't enough room on theDestiny and theTiger to house all those people.

Even if they could house them, what would they do with the slaves? A high percentage of the remaining people were the slaves belonging to the individual families. Would the Javans revolt at having that reminder of such behavior on their ships? Not only that reminder but conditions would be squalid, filthy and cramped until he could figure out what to do with them.

And then there was the other scenario, which meant leaving the two clans here on Andalucia. Jack figured that option to be a sure death sentence for all of them. Without the advantage of having the modern weapons of the marines with them, the two clans would surely be destroyed not long before theDestiny was out of sight. There was no way that Jack could willingly let them be slaughtered because they called him clan chief, even if some aspects of their society was reprehensible.

"Clan Chief?" asked Samir again, when Jack gave no answer.

"I'm still working on that, Samir. We don't have a lot of answers on that right now, but I hope to have one soon. We won't leave the two clans here just to die."

The answer seemed to placate the man, but only briefly. After a quick disposition on the routes to take on their course south, the impromptu war council broke up to go about their tasks for the day, leaving Jack alone with Abigail and Greg.

Abigail looked the most worried. "Jack, you know we don't have the room to carry that many people on theDestiny. I understand you don't want to leave them here but we certainly can't take them with us."

"I know, I know," said Jack. "But they're my responsibility now. They look to me for leadership. I can't just abandon them."

"It's not our fight though," said Greg. "We didn't force them to fight with us. From the sounds of things, this is the way Andalucia works. Some clans win, some clans lose."

"I won't do it though if I don't have to, Greg. The clans can be powerful allies. If not for both of them, we would've been overwhelmed long ago. They've proven themselves capable allies and fighters, and I don't think we should just leave them on the shores as we sail away."

"What are you suggesting then? We're running out of options, Jack."

Jack rubbed his chin. "There's got to be something we can do. Some way for us to push them back. The way they keep hemming us in makes it hard for us to focus on one clan to destroy like we did with theMuthada andNumratha."

"And we don't have that much firepower left. Or ammunition for that matter," said Greg. "What I wouldn't give to get some heavy artillery with us right now. A few howitzers would turn this around right now."

Howitzers. Could it be that easy?

Jack turned to look at both of them and grinned. "You've just given me an idea. But first, we need to get to the coast."

*****

The following morning was much the same as the previous ones in Andalucia. It was temperate even at the break of dawn, and the cloudless sky meant it would be another scorching day for all of them. Jack had scheduled an afternoon council of war, timed to coincide with their arrival on the coast. Already the rocky terrain of the interior had started to yield to the sandy dunes more commonly found on the coast, and Jack hoped that they would reach the water soon.

As he moved with the center of the group, he wasn't surprised to find Vera walking alongside him, her quiet presence always comforting as they moved along the dirt path. The Galician woman always had the bad habit of knowing exactly what was on Jack's mind, for better or for worse, and this morning was no exception.

"You don't have to feel so upset about leaving her behind," said Vera quietly. "If I could still make it out of Andalucia, surely Kat will. She's made of stronger stuff than I am."

"I don't doubt that she'll be all right, I just hate that she has to be here a moment longer than what's necessary."

"We'll find a way to get her. Don't worry, Jack."