Richard Parker - Elsewhere

“I’m glad you came,” he whispered and then they were kissing in earnest. Lonogan was dimly aware of her pulling at his clothes as they kissed, but how he rid himself of them was a complete mystery. When he was finally nude they stood, pressing hard against one another then somehow…as if by magic, they made their way back to his bed and dropped as one onto it. They never broke contact and never spoke, they just kissed and explored until the heat of their passion became too much then he was on her…in her.

Three times their passion rose to a swell and was sated, before mercifully they fell asleep in each other’s arms, both gloriously happy and content. They slept for just a little over two hours before a knock, startlingly loud in the quiet of the morning, woke them.

They came instantly awake and as the memory of the previous night returned, they smiled.

“General,” a voice sounded from the far side of the door and Jess jumped to cover herself, giggling as she fought with the blanket which was knotted around their bare legs.

“One moment,” Lonogan answered, grinning in the dim morning light then he jumped naked from the bed and looked about for his pants.

Jess giggled again.

“My pants,” he whispered to her and she pointed to the far side of the room. He retrieved them quickly but had a bit of trouble sliding in to them and had to hop twice for balance. Jess laughed again, as he picked his shirt off the floor.

“Funny eh?” He asked and smoothly ripped the covers from the bed so she lay surprised and naked, scrambling once again to cover herself.

“Lonogan!” she shouted in a whisper and it was his turn to laugh. He stared at her perfect body for a moment, then tossed her the covers and tucked in his shirt. She spread it over her and pulled it up to her chin as he went to the door.

“Sergeant Hoxley,” he said in greeting, pulling the door only partly open.

“Sir, the Toranado are mustering…we leave in an hour,” Hoxley answered spotting the cloak on the floor. He moved his head slightly to see farther into the room but Lonogan slyly moved to block his view.

“Very well Sergeant. I’ll be with you momentarily,” Lonogan said and quickly closed the door.

Jess was immediately up and out of the bed moving toward the cloak, but he reached out and stopped her, holding her still as he gazed down at her pale, flawless body.

“I want to remember this,” he added, his breath quickening as his eyes darted over her body, from the long lines of her legs, to her breasts with pale pink nipples, then down to her soft belly and beyond.

“You’re absolutely stunning,” he finally managed to whisper.

“I’m absolutely freezing despite the warmth of your eyes…now let me dress,” she said briskly, though she was well pleased. She quickly slipped into the cloak, kissed him and closed her eyes and then using one hand to hold the cloak on she began weaving the other about until a bridge was formed. She kissed him again, then stepped through to her own room and was gone, leaving behind only the scent of her body and their passion.

ǂ

Gwaynn and Samantha traveled south with Prince Phillip and the Toranado heavy infantry and reached the eastern edge of the Aleria Pass four long days after leaving Manse. Lonogan Bock, who quickly grew impatient with the plodding foot soldiers, rode ahead with the Traveler Jess na Gall to join with the Massi army already positioned near the pass.

For Gwaynn, finally joining the main army was something of a relief, but did little for his peace of mind. It was a very long trip across the Plateau; they were never underway early enough in the mornings; they never moved fast enough during the day and they always stopped way too early. He could understand his general’s impatience and would have joined him but not at the risk of insulting their Toranado allies. They needed these hard, tough soldiers…every one of them.

For the past few nights just before sunset he and Zarina Monde took turns projecting over the Scar Mountains to check on the progress of the Palmerrio, who also seemed to be moving slowly. Somehow it added to Gwaynn’s feelings of unease.

“You must focus on the coming battle,” Tabernas said to Gwaynn one evening as he sat apart from the others, mired in worry. The Toranado Weapons Master had great respect for the young Massi King and was well aware of the immense amount of pressure the young man felt, but he also knew that Gwaynn could do little for the people in Lynndon or Manse or for the Massi cavalry out on the plains. Albas thought that their battle plan was a good one under the circumstances and now they would have to just be patient and wait for the outcome. Patience, however, was not something easily practiced by the young, and Gwaynn was no exception.

Gwaynn smiled at the older man, feeling a wave of affection for him, and missing his old mentor Afton Sath with a pang of regret.

“My mind is a mess right now, flying from battle to battle. If I could only figure out how to be in more than one place at a time,” Gwaynn replied.

Tabernas chuckled and sat down on a stump of a log. He checked the darkening sky with a touch of disgust. There was a good chance they would get rain before morning and the Weapons Master hated to be wet. “The man can Travel and fight like a demon…but it’s never enough is it?”

“Never,” Gwaynn answered, refraining from mentioning his abilities with time. It was one secret he kept very close, even though he trusted the Toranado Weapons Master implicitly. He glanced up to see Lonogan Bock and na Gall strolling toward him with Samantha at their side and felt another wave of panic. Bock and na Gall seemed to have grown very close since their trip to Cassinni, though whether or not they were lovers still seemed to be an open question. He hoped they were; he guessed they were; war had a way of pushing a warrior’s emotions to the very skin…fear was obviously the most common emotion and loss, but sometimes hate and anger, as well as feelings of comradeship…and apparently love.

Samantha moved quickly to Gwaynn’s side and sat down. She took his hand in hers and he felt his heart sink with worry. Bock and na Gall took up places directly across the small fire from Gwaynn. He noticed that though they sat close together, they were not actually touching. He glanced at his General who looked back but a smile did not come to his face.

“Captain Marcum believes the Deutzani will attack again come morning,” na Gall said to no one in particular and with only a cursory glance at Gwaynn. She hated to add to his list of worries. “Their preparations are almost complete.”

“Will the Massi hold?” Tabernas asked and stood as Prince Phillip approached.

“Marcum believes they will,” Bock answered and Gwaynn could tell that he was also feeling a vast amount of pressure.

“Lynndon must hold,” Gwaynn said softly. “We have to hold the Plateau and we have to drive the Palmerrio back as quickly as we can…one battle…we must defeat them in one battle.”

No one commented for a moment, but they all knew that if the fight with the Palmerrio became a protracted affair it would bode ill for them all.

ǂ

The boulder teetered on the edge for a moment and then tipped over the Scar. Dropping straight and true, it slammed into the second shield house that was making its way up narrow path which hugged the steep cliff face. The house immediately shattered into a million tiny splinters and a bright gout of blood squirted out from beneath it, like paint thrown from a bucket; the stone then pinballed its way down the Scar and into the river below, taking most of the house and the four enemy soldiers with it. The men on the Plateau cheered wildly, ignoring the dark red smear on the path below. Up to this point most of the boulders they’d rolled over the side were either too small to do significant damage, bouncing harmlessly away from the steeply pitched roofs of the shield houses, or else they missed their mark entirely and fell uselessly into the river. The destruction of one house however, did little to slow the Deutzani’s progress up the rock face.