The Saga of Tallia the Unwilling Ch. 12

In fact by the time they were done, they bought ten large chests of teak wood. Three were filled with gold and six with silver. The last held the pearls, the half-empty spice cabinet and a smaller coffer full of amber and other jewels. They were each quite heavy and of course were too massive for them to move by themselves. Tallia stacked them in the large well-appointed communal room of the inn they rented (this room had once been Monsu's headquarters, they later learned) and covered the chests beneath a large tarp.

They could actually see the only entrance to the room from the lower dining area of the inn and deemed that secure enough for the night. They were also careful to use only with small portions of the treasure when dealing with individual merchants, thus trying to obscure just how much loot they had brought into this pirate infested river port. Still, Tallia was eager to get their hoard out of Denggang. The sooner the better. It seemed to her only a matter of time before the locals would somehow divine the full size of the hoard and attack en masse. But despite her fears, that never came to pass.

In addition to the treasure, they had their armaments, packs full of sidhe-silk garments and blankets, various other bits of gear and even a few trinkets and mementos from Gaelynglas. They also still had a collection of fine liquor stolen from Arion's cache including Yaathian brandy-wine. All in all, they had a pile of luggage, a fortune in loot and little idea what to actually do with any of it. Except the booze. They immediately had a use for that.

That evening as the sunset, the band boisterously enjoyed a large banquet centered around grilled river fish and pork rice balls. They drank only the finest brandy-wine, stolen from the wizard's stores, along with the meal. Liandra interrupted the celebratory feast with a sudden revelation: "Lord and Lady of Love, tomorrow is the Aphrodisia!"

Everyone was silent for a moment, uncertain what to make of the priestess' outburst. Hilarius as usual remedied that condition. "Dare I ask, oh wise priestess, what the hell is an Aphrodisia?"

"Only the most sacred festival of my order! By the prince of passions and the maiden of a million moans, I almost missed it!" cried the priestess in genuine distress. "I might have brought down divine anger and retribution upon us all!"

"I am not a scholar of religion," said Hilarius, "but I am going to take a stab in the dark and guess that when you celebrate something called the Aphrodisia, you do so with copious sex, wine and the like, right?"

"Indeed! And also singing!" said Liandra with a smile. "There is lots of singing as well."

"And singing as well..." Hilarius paused. Then a serious, concerned, yay genuinely worried furrowing came across his brow. "By the seven gods of fortune, my friends, shall we risk the anger of the Lord and Lady of Love by letting the sacred Aphrodisia pass unmarked?! I say thee nay!"

There was boisterous agreement once more. And more drinking.

"Oh, midsummer. That's my birthday," remarked Tallia, taking another big swig of brandy-wine.

"You... you were born on the sacred Aphrodisia?" said Liandra fairly flummoxed.

"Yes, that's what my mother always said. Well, not the bit about the Aphrodisia. I'm pretty sure you just made that up. But midsummer is my birthday. What of it?" asked the Amazon.

"What of it? That is the most auspicious day of the year to be born on!" exclaimed the priestess. "Did your mother ever say when you were born in the day?"

"I've no idea. I was a baby at the time, you see," explained Tallia, a little tipsy from the brandy-wine, "Early, I think."

"You arrived with the dawn I'll wager, the most auspicious time of day!" Liandra was now so excited she was practically vibrating. "And then to be both male and female within the span of your life. You have been chosen by the Lord and Lady of Love, Tallia. I see it clear as morning! You are destined by the gods to do great things!"

"Wonderful," answered the Amazon. "We're so rich, I was actually thinking of retiring."

"What?!" exclaimed the priestess, almost threatening to knock over the table laden with all the food.

"After of course I see about getting my damn cock back. I'm bound for Yaath'Xin next I think. I mean to hire a ship and leave Denggang behind me. Are any of you willing to travel with me? I'll warn you -- my destination is a dangerous city full of thieves and mad nobility. But it is also a fine port with more than its share of wonders."

There was yet another boisterous round of agreement. Of course, with the amount of brandy-wine that by this point they'd drunken, the Amazon probably could have proposed sailing to hell and they'd still cheer.

"I am honored to have you all as my companions," said Tallia with a bow. "Except for you, demon. I will kill you if you hurt my friends."

Zara rolled her eyes and had another drink.

Liandra though was not done, "Oh, we'll go with you to Yaath'Xin. But doubt this not -- this mad notion of retiring will meet with only dismal failure. The gods are anything but done with you, Amazon. You may be unwilling to accept the destiny that sits before you, Dawn-born, but that matters not! I have been led to you by the whisper of the sacred flame! I have seen thy destiny shining bright amidst its embers and..."

Hilarius actually gently clamped his hand over the priestess' mouth and gave her a little kiss on the cheek. "Liandra, my dear, you know I love you, but let's save any further crazy for after dessert."

Again everyone cheered. So they feasted and downed a ridiculous amount of the brandy-wine and even partook of a cask of the magic bubbly stuff which Tallia and Liandra had sampled at their first meeting. All was well, at least until after the meal when the band noticed a large party of twenty armed men coming towards them each wearing red turbans and sporting drawn blades. Tallia watched the approach curiously, but with her hand on the pommel of her sword.

One stepped forward at the head of this motley band. He was an unfriendly looking fellow, scarred and covered in tattoos, and wielding two curving swords. "I am Jongsu Throatslitter, brother of Monsu Mankiller, leader of the Red Turbans and I have come to avenge my kin. Which of you is Tallia called the Unwilling?"

Tallia rolled her eyes. She stood and drew her sword so rapidly that the blade's motion could barely be seen. The bright metal blade sang with unveiling. The point sat mere inches away from Jongsu Throatslitter's own throat. "I am Tallia the Unwilling. I am the wizard slayer, the worm rider, the tiger-dragon's bane. And I only killed your brother because he tried to rob and murder me and mine. But if we can't let bygones be bygones, I am very willing to presently cut off your head as well."

The entire inn was now utterly silent.

"Hah," said Jongsu, his voice wavering, clearly very nervous. "You think you can defeat us all, alone?"

The twenty armed men behind him brandished their weaponry.

"But she's not alone," said Zara, who stood and conjured forth a blade of living fire.

Mela too stood up and made her knife glow with fiery magical energy. "Indeed."

Two fire swords and an invincible Amazon warrior goddess proved to be too much for the rest of the Red Turbans who promptly vanished in a retreat so hasty it can only be called a rout. One of them even dropped his new turban.

Hilarius, who had not yet stood up and was still sipping sparkling rice wine contemplatively, did finally rise. He retrieved the crimson turban from the floor and placed it unceremoniously on his head and actually came over beside the very scared and very alone Jongsu who still had a sword at his throat. "Rather than die, would you like to join us for a drink, Jongsu?"

Jongsu did in fact prefer to join them for a drink.

"So, your brother -- did he treat you well?" asked Hilarius as he poured the now seated river pirate a drink and adjusted his new turban.

"Not really," said Jongsu slamming back the rice wine and wondering how long he had to live.

"I thought as much. It's tough being the little brother to some named 'mankiller' I'd wager," said the rogue, pouring Jongsu another drink. "But you can't just let someone murder your family and get away with it, can you? You are here trying to save face. Am I right?"

"Yes, yes, just so..." the river pirate stammered nervously, sword still at this throat..

"So, here's the thing. We're leaving Denggang very soon, in less than a week in fact," said the red-turbaned rogue. "I'm not sure we're ever coming back, honestly. Have you considered engaging in the ancient and elegant art of deception? You know, lying instead of dying?"

"But everyone knows," Jongsu said, slamming down another drink.

"Sure they do," said Hilarius refilling Jongsu's drink yet again. "But in a year, maybe two at the most, you can spin this happening however you want. Memory is a most unreliable tool, my dear Jongsu. Why, you can even say it was you who ran us out of town. You told us what for and we scampered out of old Denggang with our tails between our legs. I'll wager you can even craft and compose a most vivid tale about how you slew us all even after all your cowardly, worthless friends scarpered off. You can handle that, can't you, Jongsu?"

"Yes, yes, I think I can," said Jongsu again finishing his drink.

"And you've got to admit," said Hilarius pouring yet a fourth drink for the pirate, "it's better than dying or doing anything stupid like coming back later tonight to get revenge. Because if you do come back, my friends are going to murder you horribly, Jongsu. Next time, I fear I'm not going to be able to hold them back. Zara here -- she's actually a demon who loves to burns men alive. You -- you don't want to be burned alive, do you, Jongsu?"

"No, sir, no I do not." The pirate finished his drink and got a fifth poured for him straight away.

"And look how polite he is now! I respect that! I respect realizing when you're outclassed. And you are so very VERY outclassed, Mr. Throatslitter. So, finish that last drink and run along. You have a good night, alright?"

Then Jongsu did finish that last drink and left. Very rapidly in fact. Weapons were sheathed and magic flames were extinguished. And when finally the mighty Throatslitter was good and gone, everyone broke out laughing.

"Look how polite he is now!" said Tallia, barely able to contain her merriment. "You slay me, Hi!"

The inn sprung back to life with that round of laughter and everyone in the building breathed again. Hilarius noted that the company at that point stopped being charged for drinks. Thus they jested and japed late into the night and even toasted Sang more times than could easily be counted.

By night's end, despite her earlier threats, Tallia even developed a grudging respect for the demon who had been so eager to leap to her defense. So, on the eve of midsummer in the pirate port of Denggang did a group of lost, itinerant wanderers and outcasts become truly an adventuring band of friends and lovers -- one that before it was done would shake the very pillars of heaven and hell.

***

Liandra woke the company all up way too early in the morning to engage in something called the Song in Praise of Dawn. This was the traditional way to kick off the Aphrodisia, the priestess assured them. They blearily watched her prance around on the balcony of their large communal suite utterly naked (or sky-clad as the priestess preferred) and sing a song in a language none of them knew. This song went on for near half an hour.

Mela actually leaned over to Tallia about half way through and whispered, "Is this actually part of a real religion or just Liandra again being crazy?"

"No idea," said the Amazon. "What's the difference?"

Finally, Liandra bowed. Everyone applauded. The performance was, honestly, quite beautiful and maybe even a little moving. But they were not so moved that the company did not immediately head back to bed.

Somewhere around noon, they actually all awakened and reconvened for lunch downstairs. Much to perhaps no one's surprise, Liandra was still awake, still naked and sitting cross-legged down in the main dining area of the inn, sipping tea. She was not sitting on a chair but actually on top of and in the middle of a dining table. The innkeeper of the house was clearly nervous but also utterly uncertain what to do about the crazy, nude priestess who was a close personal friend of the invincible goddess of battle. Tallia tipped him generously and that seemed to settle matters.

Hilarius as usual had something to say about this, "I'm going to guess that you're going to be naked..."

"Sky-clad," corrected the priestess.

"Sorry," said the rogue with a smirk. "You're going to be sky-clad all day today, right?"

"Nothing must come between me and the Lord and Lady of Love on the sacred Aphrodisia," announced Liandra, with a look of sublime serenity on her face.

Hilarius shrugged and glanced at Tallia. Tallia rolled her eyes and went back to the Innkeeper again and negotiated the rate for them having the entire facility for the rest of the day. It turned out to be quite reasonable. Tallia at last found a use for the ring of gold that Hilarius had stolen off a magistrate just before their first arrival in Denggang.

Hilarius, sporting a wicked smile, leaned over to Tallia as the Amazon finished negotiations and whispered conspiratorially. "So, I know we're now in something close to a committed relationship, but, uh..."

"Sure," said the Amazon.

"Yeah?" asked the rogue.

"I don't mind. I already fucked her while you were healing up. I'll warn you though, she's fun but crazy. She offered to bear me a child during our first encounter."

"Okay then. Noted," With that Hilarius arose and approached the nude Liandra. He was about to say something seductive or sexy or funny or preferably all three at once when the priestess interrupted.

"Yes," said the priestess. "But..."

Hilarius was taken back by this. "But?"

"Liandra or Liander?" asked the priestess provocatively.

"I was kind of hoping... both?" said the smiling rogue.

"Then definitely yes," she said serenely. "But know this, what we do today is not simply base rutting, my friend. No, today our coupling is a holy thing. The sun today will hold dominion in the sky for longer than any other day of the year. Just as the world is bathed in light, so must we shine with glorious appreciation for the gift of love which the Lord and Lady has bestowed upon..."

In order to silence this endless river of religious dogma, Hilarius felt he had no choice but to kiss her. And not some I-share-your-fervor-and-want-you-to-know-I-do-this-only-as-a-religious-duty sort of kiss. No. This was a proper shut-up-let's-go-upstairs-and-get-a-fuckin' sort of kiss. With quite a bit of tongue as well.

Then Hilarius tried to emulate his Amazon cohort by picking her up, intent upon sweeping the priestess off her feet. This immediately proved a bad idea. Hilarius realized instantly that Liandra was way too much woman for the slight rogue to lift. But Tallia was now watching (and grinning, the bastard), and he was committed to the bit, so he strained and carried her upstairs. This very nearly killed the rogue or at least risked some sort of herniation or other permanent damage. But he did make it, barely, staggering up the stairs with very little grace. Liandra giggled the whole way.

When the rogue did arrive in the suite, he managed to place Liandra down on the silken sheets that covered the bed. He stretched and admitted, "Not my most graceful moment."

"I thought it rather gallant," said Liandra, again still giggling.

"Thank you. But I must apologize to you," said the rogue.

"Oh, whatever for?" said the bemused Liandra.

"For being areligious. Look at me, woefully un-skyclad on the sacred Aphrodisia! Let me remedy this blasphemous behavior!" He kicked off his boots, slid out of his silk shirt and tossed away his trousers with a flourish.

Liandra watched the whole dance of the disrobing rogue, still giggling rather persistently. Finally she applauded. "Very nice. Very nice indeed," she growled playfully, checking out the rogue's butt which was widely agreed to be amongst his finest features. "What shall we do first?"

"Oh, my lady, don't ask me that!" said Hilarius. "Ask instead, what won't we do?" He approached close. "I think I'd prefer, if you don't mind, to start with Liander first."

The priestess smiled and then closed her eyes. Moments later sitting on the bed, there was a handsome young man just as blonde and just as sky-clad. He opened his eyes. "I've been dreaming about this since that night in the dungeons."

"Let me then give you some new dreams," whispered the rogue.

Hilarius and Liander embraced and kissed. They tangled together on the silk sheets. After many minutes of mutual man-handling, they each took the other's cock into their mouth. It became a game then -- who could make the other come first. They lapped and suckled and nipped and stroked for all they worth. For the record, it was a tie.

After that, Liander became once more Liandra. There was a brief interlude where the pair of lovers lay together, reveling in their shared orgasms and gently playing with each other's nude forms. But eventually, Hilarius found himself getting quite hard once more. And that's when he decided it was time to fuck the shit out of this curvaceous blonde priestess before him.

Hilarious started with her beautiful blonde pussy. He found her soft golden bush to be a delightful toy, caressing and running his fingers through her downy sex. He did go down on her, but honestly by this time, they had been sucking on each other's privates for near half an hour. They were ready to move on.

The rogue was soon fucking her. They progressed through a variety of forms. Liandra told him all the poetic names for their coupling -- the union of the third eye, the trapping of the serpent, the tiger's repose and of course, the fan favorite, two wolves bay at the moon.

And that was all well and good, but then Hilarius decided, her ass -- well, it seemed it hadn't been fucked in some time. So he remedied that. Vigorously. Repeatedly. And then Liandra turned back into Liander and returned the favor.

There was more. Liandra did finally return yet again and that's when they abandoned the bed. It became an around-the-room fucking marathon then. The rogue took the priestess on the room's balcony over the looking the town below, scandalizing some locals. And on the floor. And against the wall. And over a chair.

All in all, it was a busy afternoon for the couple. It ended with them collapsing at last back on the bed.

"That was good," said the priestess still panting and sweating.

"Glad to be of service, but... one thing. I do need a favor," he said with a wicked smile.

It seemed Hilarius was not quite done.

***

Liandra came down stairs to the Inn's dining room where Tallia sat, chatting with Mela, drinking tea. Liandra was of course still sky-clad, and her slightly frazzled hair and obvious post-coital glow, gave the sidhe a bit of a start. By now, the sorceress was slowly getting used to the utterly immodest priestess. What she was not quite as used to was that Liandra was not only naked but clearly still had semen actually on her.

"The room's free," said Liandra with a smile. "There's someone up there waiting for you, both of you."

Everyone in their band was down in the dining hall except for the rogue, so Tallia naturally said, "You mean Hilarius."

"No, not Hilarius. Someone else," said Liandra cryptically.

"Gods on high and in hell, he didn't hire another prostitute, did he?"

"I'll say no more," said the priestess. "I am going to have a bath of ritual purification and then return to this chamber for a cycle of sacred song in praise of the gift of sexuality. That and more tea."