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  She dropped her knife also and smiled at him broadly. ‘Well, you do know the game properly.’

  She reached over to his face and also lightly slapped him twice on the cheek. As she did, he felt the connection. She bobbed up from the dark ocean like a capsized ship from the General’s mind and into his. A woman warrior, a champion of the Pellosi style. The General had felt insulted by her rough, dirty style, but had wanted her speed, her balance and her poise. He saw her knocked unconscious by some soldiers in a Pelloss alleyway, taken to a large building in the main street of Pelloss and chained hand and foot in a dirty basement. The General called the creature to end her. She hadn’t even woken back up. Seth could see her face. She was older than he’d thought, fifty years at least, tough and rugged but beautiful and strong. A scar under her left eye only made her more so.

  Minsetta looked at him, unaware of the discovery that had just found him.

  ‘Seth, who was your teacher? They must have been very skilled,’ she said.

  Seth spoke with pride. ‘My teacher was known as Arisetta.’

  Minsetta looked startled. ‘Arisetta, the champion of five years, the blade in the night herself.’

  ‘I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s true,’ he said, not caring if she believed or not.

  ‘If anyone but you said it, I would call them a liar. But you are proving to be a very strange and interesting boy,’ she said.

  He laughed and, pushing his luck, put his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him as they stood on the deck ‘I’m a strange and interesting man.’

  Chapter 11

  Dirst passed a small leather satchel from his hand to the man standing with him at the docks. There was nothing secret about their business as navy men often took personal notes and messages when they were travelling long distances. Some turned it into a nice side income to offset the roughness of the trip and meanness of conditions. They travelled aboard small sailing ships that also had large oar decks—when the wind stopped blowing, the ship still needed to move, even if at a much slower pace.

  ‘The Opulent left shore almost a week ago. Will you get to Dacar before it does?’ Dirst asked.

  The man replied with a smirk, ‘That wallowing whale of a ship takes its sweet luxurious time doing anything. We’ll get there a full week before they do; don’t worry on that account.’

  ‘And you can get the message to the intended without raising any notice?’

  ‘Everyone on these passenger ships comes ashore when they get the chance. It won’t be hard to pick out your friend on board, from the description, and pass them your note. Pretty important stuff, hey Dirst?’

  ‘Extremely important,’ Dirst said, pressing a gold coin into the man’s calloused hand.

  ‘Consider it as a task already done.’

  Seth got to see Minsetta naked that very night. As they stood with his arm around her on the deck with sword and daggers lying around them , she simply turned around, taking his larger hand in her small light brown one and led him away from the deck. He’d have to hope his weapons we’re still there later; he wasn’t going to stop this. They ducked and weaved in the moonlight, passed the sails of the main deck and were soon in some corridors that he hadn’t seen before. The corridors were wide enough to house the occasional shaded lamp. Minsetta pulled a small key from somewhere and opened a door that was barely visible in the lamplight.

  Her room was a lived in larger version of his own. They called tutors Masters, and they accorded them all respect. In the middle of her room was a large queen-size bed, neatly made, and, in the corner, a desk with scribing tools and a small pile of very old battered books. Minsetta pushed him forcefully through the doorway. Seth turned quickly and felt her soft lips press against his own. Parting them, she kissed him deeply and slowly, her tongue finding his. He reached behind her neck, fingers sliding through her soft brown hair, and pulled her closer to him, enjoying the sensation of her precious lips, the smell of her hair and her large, firm breasts pressing against his chest through her thin white shirt.

  Luck was always a friend to him, he thought as she shoved him backwards onto the bed. He was more than happy to let her take charge and let it all wash over him. He wasn’t nervous but a little overcome that this was happening with such a beautiful and incredible creature as Minsetta.

  She straddled him on the bed, fully clothed, and leaned down to kiss him again. She teased him, pressing herself against him, then pulling back, smiling at him with perfect white teeth and soft lips that he wanted to devour. Seth felt something growing inside of himself. It was a different sort of hunger to the deep blood lust he’d felt in Yend’s basement. It was joined by a soft roaring in his ears and mind that was starting softly . . . but he could tell would soon be deafening.

  She rolled from on top of him to stand beside the bed. Taking his hand, she guided him up from the bed as well. She smiled at him again. ‘We are wearing many too many clothes. Take them off, young Master.’

  A quick memory burst in his mind. Take off the boots first, it said; common sense, but he felt the traces of some embarrassing memories of regrettable scenes grown for situations like these. He quickly unlaced his boots and placed them near the bed. Turning to her, he unbuttoned his black shirt and threw it to the floor. He could feel the intensity of the feeling growing and growing; it was expectation, lust, and desire to see her, to have her, but also an avalanche of memories and life ready to crash down on him. He smiled at the thought of the storm to come. Fearless, he unbuckled his belt, let his pants drop, kicking them away to stand in front of her naked.

  She proved herself fearless as well as she slowly unbuttoned her thin white shirt from the top, slowly revealing the full curves of her breasts and sweet brown skin. Seth wanted to rip the shirt away and reveal her fully but submitted to the show. Once unbuttoned, she shrugged the shirt off her small shoulders and stood proudly in front of him. A minor flood of memories hit Seth in droves, every woman that the General had ever seen before naked flashed before him. Those few that Yend had lain with and even Josephine’s male lovers. Compared to handfuls of new images swimming in his mind, Seth knew without a doubt he was creating the best memory of all. They all paled compared to Minsetta.

  Her skin was starting to goose-bump slightly as she stood naked before him, letting him drink in the vision of her. He felt another rip inside and the hunger was on him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and, lifting her from the ground pressed his smiling face between her delightful breasts. She laughed out loud at his playfulness. When he had let her back down, she again pushed him back onto the bed. She undid and slid off her skirt followed by light and delicate petticoat as she approached the bed.

  She crawled up his body to his mouth, kissing him. He could feel the hunger and lust pounding through his entire body. All he wanted to do was throw her down on the bed, enter her and own her. It was a primal urge but one that felt powerful and good. She pressed down against him, running her dark nipples against his strong chest. They kissed with passion, and he felt her grinding herself against him. His cock was hard in just moments, the thought of entering her thrilling him. She kissed and grinded herself against him. He could feel the warm, wet, sweetness on his cock.

  She leaned back from him, showing him all of herself above him. It was the best view he’d ever seen in his short life. Reaching down she gently took hold of his rock-hard cock and brushed it against the lips of her soft pussy once, then twice, then guided it inside her. Slowly, slowly, she lowered herself onto him. A sensation of pure gratification ran through his body, such a physical pleasure in her hot tight wetness. The knowledge that it was her as well, that this incredible creature wanted him, wanted him inside of her, wanted to share herself with him gave him so much pleasure. Seth reached up and taking her caramel hips in his strong hands pulled her down hard onto his shaft.

  Now came the avalanche. As she rode him, grinded her hips, smiled a wicked and brazen smile, he was washed with not only the pleasur
e of their act but of all the memories as well. Stephan’s first sexual experience as a surprisingly young man, all the women, lovers, prostitutes and experiences he had known since then. Seth saw it all and was staggered. All the things he could do with Minsetta’s delightful body he now saw as possibilities. This was just the first drop in the waterfall of what he wanted to experience with her.

  He wouldn’t ever tell her that this was his first time and she’d never know. While the other soldiers in the troop had availed themselves of camp followers, prostitutes and desperate girls he’d held back. Not because he wasn’t also filled with lust and curiosity, but simply because it was a memory he’d hold forever, so better make it unforgettable for the right reasons. All the experience of being with different lovers was with him—what they liked, what they didn’t. Strangest of all, he felt the memories of Josephine and even Arisetta. The feeling of it for them as they experienced sex as a woman does. He smiled bravely and tried not to laugh at the incredible impossibility of that. He tried not to see their visual memories too much.

  As Minsetta rode above him, he locked his dark blue eyes on her dark brown ones. He felt the building pressure and pleasure inside of him, but knew that it was always ladies first. With confident fingers he reached down passed the light soft hair above her pussy and slowly, softly at first rubbed the spot that was there. It had no name in his mind, but her body sure knew what it was. She moaned a little as he found it and she began to grind herself against his fingers and hand. She increased the pace and leaned her body down close to his.

  Seth grabbed her dark hair again with firm but gentle fingers; he pulled one of her precious dark nipples into his mouth and let his tongue enjoy it. He gripped her hair harder, yet pulling her into him, sucking and licking her nipple and thrusting into her hot wetness as hard as he could. He felt a sweet shudder of enjoyment run through her body, and she blessed him with a beautiful scream of release as she came.

  She pulled herself back from him. He looked at the glorious sight of her nakedness as he came deeply inside of her. A feeling of total pleasure and wicked ownership washed through him.

  Even though he was the bigger of the two by a good span, he found himself with his face nuzzled into her skin, the calm after the storm washing over him. He wouldn’t ever tell her but he truly felt blessed. What an experience. Luck was shining on him, truly.

  She laughed at him. ‘You look like a young boy revelling in his first kiss,’ she said.

  ‘That was my first kiss. How did I go?’ he asked, also laughing.

  ‘It seems that you do everything well, and all at a terribly young age. It’s quite remarkable.’

  ‘You are remarkable. If you walked around naked all day, nothing would get done anywhere,’ he said finding one of her nipples with his mouth and licking it. He felt he could devour her whole and still not get his fill of her flesh.

  She laughed at him again. ‘I knew you’d be good at it; good fighters always make good lovers. Now, young Master Seth, you must leave so I can sleep and teach the Captain’s son Pellosi tomorrow.’

  He may have felt some rejection about that request if he wasn’t the man he was, but he was walking in the footsteps where others had stumbled, badly. Seth rolled up from the bed with a smile on his face. Bowing to her, he said in Pellosi, ‘May the fates guide me back home again.’ It was a variation of something Pellosi said to their sailors.

  ‘Nothing you say should surprise me,’ she said, pulling up the covers over her nakedness. ‘Can you lock the door?’

  ‘Of course, mistress,’ he said. Quickly and without fuss, Seth donned his slightly creased black shirt, pants, belt and boots. He smiled at her again and walked towards the door.

  ‘Oh, Seth,’ she said as he was across the room.

  ‘Yes, mistress?’ he asked turning around.

  ‘See you tomorrow night for another sparring match,’ she said, not asking.

  He laughed. ‘Oh, I have a lot of new moves to try. I’ll be there.’

  Chapter 12

  The next month for Seth passed like a blissful, lustful dream. During the days, he strolled in the sun aboard the deck of The Opulent, talking with Lady Elizebetha or other passengers. He was constantly in such a glorious good mood that he engaged everyone and tended to infect them with his happiness.

  At night time, he came to the sparring deck near the figurehead and waited for Minsetta to come. She wouldn’t come every night, and he never questioned why. It almost became part of the game to them, the anticipation of if she would come or not. Where they would go and what they would do. She was as fearless as she was beautiful; there was nothing that Seth could bring from the vaults of memories that she would blink an eye at. They enjoyed trying them all, but she wasn’t surprised by him. She said she’d stopped being surprised by him now.

  One night, she sat beside him on the wooden chair on the deck. It was so late he didn’t think she was coming and the moon was high in the sky. The ropes and moorings were quietly creaking in the soft salty sea breeze. She had sat without saying a word and was silent still. He turned to look at her and she smiled at him. She wore the long black dress he’d seen her in that day on the ship.

  Silent himself, Seth stood up from the bench and stood in front of her. Without a word, he slowly knelt down in front of her. His fingers found the edges of the dress and lifted it up, exposing her smooth light brown legs. He felt her take in a breath of anticipation, but that was her only comment.

  Taking her legs, he pulled her forward on the seat towards him. He lifted the dress and exposed her pussy to his view, he leant his face down towards her pussy, feeling the heat on his lips. He pressed against her. She had a light patch of pubic hair above her mound, and he pushed his face against it. Spreading her legs now, he slowly started to run his tongue up the length of her pussy and felt as she started to get wetter and wetter on her own.

  This was something only done in Pelloss, where the women were much more sexually free. The men in Cravoss and certainly in the North didn’t hold the refined ideas about the women enjoying sex as well. But for Seth right now this was total indulgence. What could be more sexual, more enticing than this woman right here, the most intimate thing he could ever do to her and she wanted him to?

  When she was wet, ready and making soft moaning sounds, he lifted his tongue from her pussy to the sensitive little spot below her mound. He gently licked and then sucked the spot. Taking two fingers, he slid them deeply into her as she grabbed the back of his head and pulled his face hard into her pussy and started to grind against him. He sucked and the licked the spot, loving the feeling—and his fingers did as well. She grinded harder and harder and faster until he felt that familiar shudder and felt her contract against his fingers.

  He licked her a few more times, very softly, and, taking his fingers slowly out, pulled down her dress and looked up at her from his kneeling position. She was flushed, but smiling. He almost laughed, but just smiled back. Seth stood, leaned forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek. ‘See you tomorrow.’

  Sometimes, they simply sat on the deck and talked in the lamplight. Seth had the idea that she was a good span of years older than he, as she had experienced a lot of the world and spoke to him much about Pelloss. She said his Pellosi language was good but that it was functional and needed work; she spoke about where he could live when he got there.

  ‘So, young Master, what is your plan when we land in Pelloss?’ she asked.

  ‘I have no plan. I’m like a leaf blown by the wind. I’m in the employ of Lady Elizebetha, as you know, but I’m not sure what she wants of me when we land,’ he said.

  ‘Will you stay with her?’ she asked.

  He laughed. ‘I will unless I get a better offer. Do you need a bodyguard?’

  She leaned into him and kissed his slightly stubbled cheek. ‘I don’t know what I need, but maybe we’ll find it in Dacar.’

  ‘Oh, the island. The Captain says we’ll make landfall tomorrow in the daytime. H
ave you been there before?’ he asked.

  ‘You should know by now that I’ve been almost everywhere. It’s quite large and prosperous, as it’s a natural stopping point for all trade between Pelloss and Cravoss,’ she said.

  ‘Maybe you’ll find a wise woman to tell you that you need to find love,’ he said, teasing her.

  ‘Is that what you’ve found, Seth?’ she questioned.

  ‘Well, lust and adventure, at least, and the best month of my young life.’

  She smiled at him in the yellow light. ‘You are a sweet child.’

  ‘I’m a sweet man. I’ve almost reached my twentieth name day.’

  ‘I’ve got a present for you in my room,’ she said, and, taking his hand, she led him off the deck.

  Seth was finding it harder and harder to keep his emotions in check. The sex was so incredible, she was so intelligent and beautiful, and he could almost not believe he had her to himself. If she were some girl back home, he would simply say he loved her and be done with it, but she wasn’t. She already thought him young, and she was a good ten span years older than he. He kept his emotions in check and played the role of sweet lovesick boy; she seemed to like it and if she got out of line, he could just tie her to the bed again.

  It was midday when the island city of Dacar came into view. The vast wooded bulk of The Opulent crept slowly across the blue bay and afforded Seth a long extended view of the place. It was a fine looking city, large port, with many piers and people off loading goods from ships. There was the normal warehouse area next to the docks and in the distance Seth could spy the city proper, many brick and stone buildings on tiered levels. In the furthest distance stood a blue stone keep of decent size. The Duke of Dacar held it. The seat was by appointment of the king, normally to someone who was in his favour or regard. It wasn’t passed down the family line through and every ten years or so there was a new Duke of Dacar. This was how the King of Cravoss kept the trade terms well skewed in his favour.