Barbarian Bait Ch. 02

While Lara attended the nuptials of the new brides. I had to remain in her tent. Next year I would serve as a witness as well, but for the next two weeks, I was to be contemplative of the gods and my role as a wife with full rights. A few days later, for the first time, I rode with the other wives. In a shakedown ride, we galloped and cantered the horses until the barbarian village vanished below the horizon. The comments I heard regarding my horsemanship were wonderful indeed to hear. After a picnic on the remote plains, we returned to the village. I could ride unsupervised now if I chose, but I could not imagine too many occasions when I would not want Ruk riding by my side, at least when he was not on active duty.

The fourteen days ended. In a quiet assembly with just the oldest priestess in the village each of told what we had learned about ourselves and we most wanted out of our marriage. I was surprised to discover that not all of us wives sought the same things. Some of the women were clearly not as happy as me. I sincerely thanked the gods that Ruk had won me. Some of the other husbands sounded impossible to deal with. Most of the wives were very happy, however. The peace pole, for all its faults, seemed to create strong marriages. At dawn, came the reunion with my husband. I had been apart from Ruk so long I thought that I would die. To be back in his arms was a supreme goodness. When we made love that night it was especially wonderful. Overcome with joy and satisfaction, it felt like every bone had left my body. We slept in the next morning and just reveled in each other's presence.

While I was ecstatic that Ruk was now on patrol duty, it sometimes meant he was absent entirely, sometimes as long as a week or more, as his patrolled long distances over the plains to protect the convoys. I hated being apart from him but if he advanced in his career, both of us would benefit. To battle loneliness, on those occasions, I moved in with Lara. Her husband, Tac was in the same patrol as Ruk so we commiserated together. Lara and I were overjoyed each time our men returned home. The sex Ruk and I had once he was back in our tent and I got him out of his uniform, was without question, the best of our marriage. Tac really enjoyed having his brother-in-law in his unit. Even though Ruk was not an officer, the two enjoyed getting to know each other better and became extremely close. Ruk progressed another rung up the ladder.

"Do you REALLY want to hear about THAT day?" If you insist, I will try not to cry."

I thought that I would die. The blare of horns from heralds filled the camp. Part of the patrol had returned early. Lara knew it was bad news. I knew it was bad news. We hugged each other. Despite our tough warrior wife exterior, fear gripped both of our souls. Tac, bloody, out of breath and bedraggled burst into the tent. His eyes told me most of the story. Why I did not break down in tears at that moment is a mystery I will never understand. Tac said simply, "Ruk." and took my hand I cried when I spied the wagon rolling past. Ruk's head was propped on some cast off armor. His shirtless torso was coated in bloody bandages and medics were tending to him. He appeared gray, almost bloodless. His eyes were closed and they appeared sunken. I knew it was very serious. I collapsed into Tac's arms and wailed like a child.

Despite my grief, I heard every word that Tac spoke. "While we were guarding a convoy, a band of renegades ambushed us. It was as though they came out of nowhere. Ruk took four bolts from renegade crossbows. One of them was meant for me another would have taken out the Major. Both of us would be dead if Ruk had not shown more bravery than any other man I have ever known..."

All I could utter was. "How bad?"

"Maybe, IF he survives the night. Be brave Luz, be brave."

By this time, Lara had caught up to us and she embraced me. She cried. I cried. Neither of us got any sleep that night. I wanted to rush to Ruk's side but the medics and healers would not let me near him. They told me that everything was touch and go. Ruk had lost a considerable amount of blood. Priestesses visited me as did an army chaplain. Lara made sure that I ate and put me to bed all I did was lie between the furs and stare into the darkness. I expected to be a widow in the morning.

Ruk amazed everyone, however. A chaplain summoned me from Lara and Tac's tent. Ruk was battling hard. Instructed not to cry, I was led into the medical tent. Ruk did not seem as ashen and pale this day. His eyes fluttered open. He smiled weakly. I squeezed his hand and kissed him on the cheek I heard a noise and when I looked up, a general was striding in. I had never been this close to a general before. He was tall and broad. His thick beard gave him an air of authority and power. A few paces behind him was Major Arno and Tac. I saw Ruk struggle to raise his hand in salute.

"At ease soldier!" barked the general. "Sergeant First class Ruk, I have read the reports and tributes of Major Arno and Captain Tac and their men. Your acts of bravery and quick thinking have earned you the Distinguished Service Medal. Further, you are ORDERED NOT to die, because when you recover, you brave son of a bitch, there is a Lieutenant's butter bar waiting for you. Congratulations soldier."

With that the general's face broke out in the briefest of smiles He saluted Ruk, nodded at me then turned on his heels, exiting with Tac and Arno in his wake.

I cried into Ruk's bandages for a long time, my tears mixing with his blood.

That night, Ruk lapsed into a coma. Things appeared bleak indeed. Lara suggested the next morning that I ask the incarnation of the Great goddess to intercede on Ruk's behalf. That is just what I did. As soon as it was dark, I struck out alone for her encampment. She and incarnation of the god Loy sat around a small fire dining and laughing. When I appeared, both of their countenances became serious. I practically tumbled off Blaze as I poured my heart out to the goddess. She embraced me and told me to stifle my tears. After a long while, I regained control of my emotions. She spoke to me in a reassuring manner, the deepest compassion in her voice.

Once I had got a hold of myself, the Great goddess led me into her tent, she offered me a vial of greenish liquid to drink. I don't know what the potion was, it tasted vile but filled my mind with beautiful colors and a feeling of elation. I suddenly felt very light and giddy. I don't remember getting undressed but the next thing I knew, I was naked and huddled over a small fire inhaling the smoke of some very heady incense.

The beautiful goddess was suddenly as naked as I was. She took the sweetest honey I have ever tasted and coated it over her feminine fur. Speaking softly yet firmly to me she encouraged me to get on all fours and dine on her kitty the same way that Ruck did on mine. I had NEVER done anything like that with a woman before! I will concede that I THOUGHT about it from time to time, but not in any serious way. For some reason, perhaps, because of the potion or the incense, perhaps both, I found myself reveling in the task. I sought the incarnation's' sensitive bead of flesh and focused my lips and tongue upon it. The goddess began panting and sighing.

While I was in this position, I was suddenly aware of the incarnation of the god Loy behind me. I felt his hands on my back and then upon my privates. He parted my lower lips and slid his massive organ into my kitty. For some reason I was so moist, his huge maleness entered me with no resistance whatsoever. The incarnation of Loy is quite talented! He began to pump to the same rhythm and my tongue and lip thrusts of the goddess. I experienced a kind of bliss I had never felt before, I felt my every stress and worry flee my body. The goddess and god came at almost the same time. My own passions had been raised to an astonishing level. Never had I been so insatiable serving the gods sent me to a place I had never visited before. The world seemed to draw away. I imagined I was an owl gazing down at the goddesses' red tent from an impossible height. After a very long time, the great goddess pulled away from me and Loy's manhood softened and withdrew from my kitty. Overwhelmed and drained, I collapsed into a spent form upon the floor of the tent and the world went dark.

I awoke naked and alone in strange sleeping furs. Loy and the Great Goddess stared down out me. Instructed to remain silent, Loy cooked a simple, yet delicious breakfast. The three of us ate, the only sound birds and an occasion whinny from Blaze. The goddess had a large metal bathtub. After Loy filled it with steaming, scented water he and the Great goddess soaped me head to toe and sang songs in two very fine voices as they washed me. No part of me, save my eyes, was left untouched. At last, the two redressed me and for the first time the goddess spoke.

"Your passion, Luz has touched the souls of the gods. Although the after world has set aside a horse and tent of honor for your heroic husband, it was decided to return him to this one. In a few days, he will recover. The gods could not deprive him of such a beautiful and loving wife. Go now, Luz and cease your worries."

With that, both she and Loy kissed me full on the lips for a long time. Loy assisted me in mounting up and I rode directly back to the barbarian village. In order to not lose the blessing of the gods, I did not look back a single time.

The goddess was a good as her word. Two days later, Ruk's eyes opened and the danger had passed. My husband recovered at a steady pace. To my horror, his beautiful torso now bore livid scars where the bolts had pierced his armor and lodged in his chest. Another large scar marked the place of the incision where the doctors had inserted a tube to re-inflate his left lung. The medics, Tac and the general told him to take as long as he needed to mend. Ruk could have taken several months, as I wished, but he had no desire to appear weak. He was also very anxious to return to duty so that he could begin his career as an officer. As soon as he was able, he was walking about the medical tent. The medical people, however, would not even consider discharging him unless he had had a month of supervised rest. That timetable had come down from the general himself, so Ruk settled in. He was very stubborn, but he DID, at last, learn to relax.

Sex with my husband during this time was out of the question. At least it was SUPPOSED to be. When the healers and nurses were out of view, my hand slid under the covers and grasped my favorite part of him. I pleasured Ruk with my hand while looking out for prying eyes. Almost always, we were interrupted. One time, however, I brought him to the cusp. So as not to leave any incriminating evidence, my head darted out of view and encircled his shaft. I think, even after all these years, his cum tasted sweetest of all at that particular moment!

My enforced celibacy became a time of reflection and work. Every spare moment I drilled with Lara. We used naked blades with chest protectors against each other now. I rode Blaze a great deal and spent as much time with my husband as I could. I hated sleeping alone but was beyond joy in realizing that I would not be a widow. My status was in a strange sort of twilight zone. Technically, I was not an officer's wife yet. On the other hand, there was no longer a place for me among the other sergeants' wives. Many women approached me and sought to strike up conversations and seek advice. In the barbarian world, a warrior's bravery was said to be a direct reflection of how intensely he is loved. For Ruk to do what he had done, the thinking went, he must have had an astoundingly loving wife.

Ruk said that that part was true, that he DID have an astoundingly loving wife but that his battlefield actions had all been instinctual. "I was too angry and too caught up in events to think. I didn't even feel the bolts until I had removed the head of the renegade who was firing at us with my sword."

Then he turned serious, "I saw the after world, Luz. The warrior god Thrall showed me the mighty thunder horse and the lavish tent waiting for me. But something was missing. My precious Luz was not there. And then I felt your head on my chest and the beat of your sobs and I begged Thrall to send me home to you. And he did!"

I hugged him so intently at that moment. Only later did I try to reconcile the image of the man I loved with the fact that he had taken a life and might be required to do so again in the future. I recalled my time on the peace pole and a chill passed through me. My brother could have ended up on the point of Ruk's sword! Had he killed Tye, I could NEVER have loved him. But Ruk had disarmed him with minimal damage. That was the man I knew, the kindest, most loving man I had ever met. He killed to save his own lives and others. Still, the thought gave me pause. Battle was as much a part of the barbarian world as breathing. I was the wife of a soldier and would be for the rest of my life. Every day after that, I burned a sacred candle, so that the gods would continue to look favorably on my husband. Whatever remained in my soul of the great arbitrator, vanished utterly.

Both of us garnered a great deal of attention. Very powerful men stared intently as I passed. I was the recipient of various small gifts and niceties and many letters of introduction. The passion I owned, which inspired Ruk, was something they wanted to experience for themselves. I tried to not let it turn my head.

That Ruk was desired as well should not have bothered me but it did. One morning I strode into the medical tent to discover my husband talking and giggling with his general's youngest wife. At that moment, I felt invisible. The general's wife was, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She seemed almost an illusion. Impossibly tall on long shapely legs, with hair the color of straw that fell to her alluring buttocks, she had the biggest breasts I had even seen as well as the biggest and bluest eyes in all the world. She noted my arrival and smiled at me. Her white teeth glittered like the sun as reflected on the edge of a blade.

"You must be the famous, Luz." she said to me. Then she turned, whispered something in Ruk's ear that made him smile ear to ear, turned, and made her exit. I am positive my jaw was on the floor as I watched her stride out of the tent.

"You are far more beautiful, Luz" stated Ruk.

"Husband, I should report you for making a falsehood. Soldiers are not supposed to lie!"

"What gave you that idea?" Soldiers lie all the time and officers are worse."

"Then you admit that she is prettier than me!"

"I DO NOT, LUZ! Besides I could never make that woman as happy as I make you."

"Perhaps not, husband, but I am sure that you would like an opportunity to try!"

"Now. Luz, my sources had informed me that you have been getting quite a bit of attention yourself. I KNOW my commanding general sent you a rather interesting letter."

Then we gazed at each other. His sly, devilish smile caused my jealousy to flee, at least temporarily and we both laughed. We kissed for quite a while. Ruk became quite aroused, however, I was a bit irked at how he had behaved with the general's young wife, so I made and excuse as to why I could not give him at least a little pleasure. I felt a bit of guilt over my selfish behavior later, but not much.

On the way home, I considered the general's letter. The only man more powerful than a general was the barbarian chief, who roved between the encampments. The likelihood that I would ever meet HIM was infinitesimally small. At best, I would the barbarian chief as he addressed an assembly. While I had not yet seen the barbarian chief, it was not beyond the realm of possibility that he had seen me. The barbarian chief attended the Peace Fair. He and the mayor of the Great walled city, made an annual show of shaking hands and exchanging bottles of potent liquors. It was not beyond the realm of possibility that the barbarian chief had spied me as I dangled from the chains of the peace pole and had witnessed Ruk's victory over my brother. Not that he would have any reason to recognize me should we meet. Still, it was an interesting thought.

My third sharing moon loomed. One of the reasons Ruk pushed himself so hard to get well was because he wanted to participate. I'm sure the promise of the general's youngest wife inspired him as well! I allowed my anger to pass, I could not judge Ruk to severely for being a man. I had the rest of my life to wash that woman's stain off of my husband's body. Hopefully, she would not also make her way into his soul!

The thought that in so short a time I had become an officer's wife and that the life I imagined years in the future would be available to me now made me beyond grateful. I imagined where I would be if Ruk had lost. By now, I either would be married or engaged to some flabby but wealthy royal. I could see his jowly face and massive gut, his odor preceding him, like something out of a nightmare. Loving Ruk, was a supreme blessing. Even sharing him with beautiful women could not diminish my ardor. Had the Great arbitrator known I'd be so happy on the plains? Perhaps he truly was as wise as his priests claimed. Though I would always follow the beliefs of the people of the plains, I would always carry at least a bit of respect for the god of my youth and girlhood.

A few nights later, in the dining tent, Ruk received his commission. I thought that my pride would burst out of my body like a flame. Ruk's entire unit assembled. The dashing line of officers and soldiers in their dress tunics under the glow lights was impressive, to say the least. First came the awarding of the medals. Ruk was not the only soldier or officer recognized for gallantry, however, he alone won the Distinguished Service Medal.

The ceremony accompanying his commissioning brought a lump to my throat and filled my eyes with emotion. A band played some rather haunting tunes outside the tent. A priestess and a chaplain made invocations and then everything became deathly silent. Even the band ceased playing after a long pause, the incarnation of the god Loy entered dressed in a military uniform bearing every rank. Behind him, collared at the end of a leash was the incarnation of the Great goddess! I scarcely recognized her as she was dressed in the same clothes that all of the wives. I understood, from my studies, that commissioning ceremonies were the only time she humbled herself and Loy took charge of their relationship. The barbarian warrior gods were all supremely male. Whereas the Great goddess ruled this world Thrall ruled the next, Loy was his representative in this world.

Loy strode front and center of the assembly and freed the incarnation of the Great goddess. She fell to her knees at his feet and gazed up at him. Loy's deep voice rumbled like thunder.

"Warriors, tonight we honor the great god Thrall. All of you warriors shall exit this ceremony altered, some more than others. New officers shall be born tonight. Your tents shall be erected in the after world awaiting the day when their occupants will enter into full glory. The ritual we perform tonight is only a shadow or dim reflection of what awaits a diligent warrior and his dutiful wife."

The ceremony was quite elaborate. I followed most of it, except the parts in the ancient barbarian tongue. Only priestesses, incarnations of the gods, and a few other holy people spoke it these days. Ruk had to memorize a long snatch of dialogue for when Loy performed a call and response. Loy removed his sword which the goddess kissed. She kissed his boots as well. The ceremony ended with the incarnation of the goddess liberating Loy's penis from his leather pants and suckling him to climax. The goddess swallowed, re-concealed Loy's manhood and rose to her feet.