The Voyage of the Silken Siren (The Corsair and Xanaphia)

The melody was the gentle twanging of oud and qanun and the whistling drone of the nay, rising above the babble of voices that filled the katra. Serving women in bell-bedecked layered skirts and vests moved through the laughing, singing crowd bearing steaming dallahs of coffee and karak chai, and sweetened tamar and laban, and fortified wines. here and there one or another of the women spun, laughing as she avoided the groping hands of merchants and sailors.

"Hear my cry Bajir, bringer of fortune!" called a man in one corner. "Show your mercy upon your son Yusef, who will build for you a temple with his winnings!" With that he cast the dice, watching them bounce and clatter and come up with a liar's straight: 1, 1, 2, and 3. "Behold!" he proclaimed, throwing down his tiles before scooping the dice up. "The Gods have heard my prayer! I am favored of them!"

Palming the dice he'd thrown, he dropped the house dice into the cup and passed them to the woman who sat to his right. She was a worthy opponent, one that had been steadily cleaning out his stake all evening. Perhaps the Gods had been kind to him, but he had found long ago that the Gods showered their blessings upon those who created their own opportunities. And so he had begun switching in his own loaded dice, just frequently enough to begin tipping the odds back in his favor.

The woman took the cup, and he allowed his eyes to linger on the generous expanse of coffee and cream flesh her blouse exposed. She was slim and well built, with long silken midnight hair, possessed of the grace of a dancer. Ever since he had begun switching the dice he had made it his mission of the evening to raise the stakes in hopes of drawing her into wagering her favors for the evening. "I wager ten endubis," he announced, tossing the gold coins into the center of the table. Then, with a flourish, he poured a goblet of dark wine and drank deeply.

"Ten endubis," he repeated, meeting her eyes. Then, with an ironic grin and a lifted eyebrow, he offered her the goblet. "Will you drink before you throw, radiant daughter of Edana? The lips of the favored of the Gods have tasted this wine. Mayhap you will drink deep of my blessing?"

Meanwhile, in other parts of the world.

---

The fastest way to go broke gambling was to spend your own money to do so. That was why Aurelia had spent the better part of the evening betting against the handsome stranger with the gold from his own pocket. What was frustrating was that he was beginning to win it back. But she hid that annoyance under a sultry smirk, not daring to take her eyes away as he placed his wager. Unseen nimble fingers reached into his pack, finding several heavy golden pieces between them.

“If you have enough blessing to share, how could I possibly refuse?” she asked in a faux innocent tone, letting her other hand caress the knuckles of his hand to take the goblet. The hand palming his own gold joined in on holding the cup bringing it to her lips. She let the coins clatter on the table as she returned his goblet to him, empty of course. “I wouldn’t dare waste a single drop of your blessing,” she explained, leaning closer to him, letting her breasts rest on the lip of the table. He had been gawking all night, and it made pilfering him all the easier. She merely considered it payment for her company.

With an enthusiastic throw, she let loose the dice. 3,3,3, and a 5. She squealed in genuine excitement, and squeezed his thigh, just above the knee “Your blessing was most beneficial, Ba-tal. I really must thank you for sharing it with me.” Holding up one of the coins she had just won from the pot, “Another bottle of wine, for Yusef, blessed of the Gods!” She collected her winnings and the dice, bending over the table to reach them.

“20 endubis,” she declared, passing the cup filled with dice back to his hand. She poured him a goblet once the wine arrives, and poured herself one as well, enjoying the way his firm body moved as he settled into his chair. Perhaps she’d throw him a pity lay, if she cleaned him out. Make him work for it, though. Tend to her pleasure first, of course. It had been awhile she demanded satisfaction.

“You should roll, Ba-tal, while the dice are hot. The blessing of the Gods does not last forever!”

He forced himself to laugh as she beat his throw and raked in the coins - a feat made easier by the way her hand rested in his thigh and the delightful way her breasts seemed to swell as she leaned into the table. How would they appear in his hands, he wondered as he imagined mounting her like a stallion. "The blessing of the Gods is fickle," he declared, "and granted in full measure to beauty! Come, I shall reclaim it before I throw!" At that he darted in, tasting the strong wine on her lips as he kissed her and switching the dice at the same time. Then he made his throw, counting on her to be more interested in the score than in any retaliation.

The ivory dice bounced across the table, tinking gently as they struck the tiles. Four sixes lay there on display, the cast known in truth as the Blessing. The only way to avoid defeat now was to cast quadruple sixes as well, in which event all remaining players would have to match the pot or withdraw. "Twenty endubis," he agreed, tossing the coins into the pot. "And twenty more, for the Gods love boldness even above beauty."

He scooped the dice up and dropped them into the cup. Let her toss the loaded dice this time, he decided. Then he opened the bottle she had purchased, and drank deeply. "Will you have my blessing back before you cast?" he asked, taking another sip and leaning close. "I offer it freely, for I love beauty and boldness both."

Aurelia was at a loss as he kissed her, impressed and scandalized by his audacity, split between slapping him and pulling him in closer. In the end she did neither, just watched with a dazed look as four sixes came up on his dice. Perhaps the gods did favor him. She swallowed down her dismay alongside a mouthful of summer wine

“Impressive Ba-tal,” she intoned, batting her lashes and getting back in the game. “Truly you are loved by Gods and women both.” She tossed her chips into the pot and shook the cup, knowing the odds were against her. And she hated when the odds were against her.

"Will you have my blessing back before you cast?" he asked, taking another sip and leaning close. "I offer it freely, for I love beauty and boldness both."

She smirked, one hand snaking behind his head to pull him closer. He tasted spicy, and she found she rather enjoyed it, biting on his lip as he tried to pull away. Her free hand dipped into his pocket again, taking a larger handful. It was a dangerous move, making his pouch noticeably lighter. All she could was hope the weight of her breasts against his chest was sufficient distraction.

Still pressed against him, she threw her dice. 6…6…6…the last one bounced a couple times before landing. 5. “Very good, Yusef, Beloved of the Gods." She gave him another peck. "But you just have to give me a chance to win back my money!” She purred, shifted to sit on his lap now. “Tell me, do you deal in the currencies of the flesh?”

"Tell me. Do you deal in currencies of the flesh?" she purred, her firm rear a pleasant weight against his groin as she curled into his lap.

He smiled - not quite leered - at the question. Her midnight hair was like silk beneath his fingers, and her body was strong and supple as his hand ghosted down her back, and it was easy to believe she would be passionate and responsive when he bedded her. "I have been known to accept such currencies," he whispered into her ear. "From time to time."

Gods of al-Nishir, how he wanted this woman! And he knew she knew it as well - even had she been blind to his attentions, the iron proof of his desire was hard against her rump. And from the subtle way she moved against that hardness, it was clear she had noticed.

"A new wager, then?" he offered, his hand resting on her hip. "All of my winnings, staked against a night spent upon the honey-dewed altar of Edana?"

As he spoke, his free hand reached into his purse to claim the last of his coins, only to close upon a soft, warm hand. The woman's hand, he discovered as he seized her wrist in an iron grip and dragged it into view. "Thief!" he hissed, eyes narrow with fury.

She jerked her arm, trying to free it from his grip. The effort failed, but in the struggle his collection of loaded dice scattered across the gaming table. Several players, hard-eyed men and women who had bowed out but remained to watch the contest with interest, hissed in sudden fury. "Cheat!" one cried, and then another and another took up the refrain.

Normally, he would have been quite happy to grapple with a luscious wildcat of a thief. With a body like hers, the punishment he would have meted out would have been most pleasant. But she was astride him and furious, striking at him with the closed fist of a true warrior. A now the rest of the crowd - which an instant ago was laughing and applauding - was turning ugly. "There is, I - damn you, woman!" He seized her other wrist, arms straining with the effort of restraining her. "There is a perfectly reasonable..."

Steel glittered in more than one hand. "Liar!" someone howled, lunging across the table with the dagger. "Cheat!"

Twisting, he shoved the woman into his attacker as he tumbled backwards and away from the knife. As he rose, a half-dozen others came towards him, blades in their hands and murder in their eyes.

An act that was intended to distract her mark was proving distracting to Aurelia as well. She could feel him, throbbing beneath her. And, from what she could feel through his clothes, losing this bet might not be the worst thing that could happen. It might even be a win/win.

What was the worst thing was getting caught with her hand in his pouch. Because she was fantasizing about how he might take her, and how she might take him in return. Thoughts that were not easily washed away even as she struggled against him, desperate to free her wrist from his vice grip.

So, as she was preparing a peace offering of carnal pleasures, noting he was still pulsing hard against her, a second set of dice spilled from his sleeve, landing on four sixes yet again. “Cheat! Filthy cheater! Hydranes take you!” Her fist smashed into his ear, and other were joining in the chorus of accusations.

The only defense he could prepare was to shove her into his accusers. Gold coins she had hidden on her person, spilled onto the floor as she stumbled. Now the accusation of cheat were silent, as the was a mad rush to collect the money glittering on the dirty ground.

“Hey, you swiped this from me!” One man called, holding up a golden dinar, mixed among the endubis and doubloons, and darics. Two more men grabbed her, grubby hands feeling her up, looking for me ill gotten loot.

“Who else did you steal from?” one demand, as he squeezed a breast, and more hidden coins dislodged from her cleavage. Her answer was to stomp her heal into his toes and elbow his groin. With a hand free, she pivoted toward the other man that held her, her fist pounding into his nose and mouth, breaking it upon impact. He staggered back, just long enough for her to pull her sword.

Backing up, she bumped into the dirty cheat, who had blown her cover. Fighting off a bar full of angry drunks was not how she hoped to end the evening. “This is all your fault!” She growled, parrying a wild lunge from a dagger.

With no time to draw his blades, he stopped his first attacker with a foot to the stomach. The man fell to the ground, clutching his gut and tripping the second attacker. The third was a woman with a hooked knife, and he sidestepped her slash and drove his fist into her kidney. She fell, and he stomped hard on the back of her head as he shoved his way towards the exit.

The problem, of course, was that the attack was turning into a near-riot. Patrons were scrambling for gold - his gold - and fighting one another as well. The serving women were battling to reach the safety of the back rooms, and the owner and his two strong sons were laying about indiscriminatly with cudgels. "Cheat!" someone roared, coming at him with a tulwar.

He didn't even recognize the man, and he was certain he nadn't been in the game. But his scimitar cleared his scabbard with a hiss as he had these thoughts, and the bell-like sound of steel on steel rang out as blades clashed. One pass, two, and then he had an opening! Blood spurted and his attacker went down, clutching his thigh and moaning in agony.

Someone bumped into him and he spun, only to find himself staring into the dark eyes of his lovely thief (and noting the arm's length of naked steel she gripped). "This is all your fault!" she growled.

He lept away, avoiding a cudgel blow as she parried a dagger thrust. "Mine?" he shouted, parrying a second cudgel blow and punching the wielder. "Mine! Barabba and Hardom, woman, it was not I who was caught with my hands in another's purse!"

His scimitar lept and flickered like lightning, driving back four more attackers. It was becoming clear, however, that he and the thief were now the focus of the mob. Something had to be done. So he spun, grabbing a heavy wooden chair and hurling it. It sailed through the air and smashed through the woiden slats that covered the window. "That way!" he shouted to the thief, gesturing with his scimitar towards the dark city beyond the window.

Aurelia didn’t need to be told twice, diving through the shattered glass and rolling into a sprint. She turned one corner, and then turned the next, hoping to keep any pursuers lost from her antics. She passed an alley and grabbed for his hand, yanking him in after her. Why, she wasn’t exactly sure. But they were in this together now, and if they hid in the same place, it seemed less likely he would try and sell her out to the mob.

The pounding of numerous feet were not far behind, so she pulled him tight against her, trapping herself between the brick wall and his rock hard body. Breathing hard, her flatten breasts strained against his firm chest. She could see the mob stop beside their hiding place, looking frantically in each

“They headed for the docks!” Someone declared, and the mob was away in that direction. For a second longer Aurelia held him tight against her, fearing it was a ploy to get them to reveal their hiding place, before releasing him. Lightning quick, her hand struck his cheek, not terribly hard, just a sting to get his attention.

“Idiot! You catch me with my hand in your pocket and your response is to declare it to the entire bar?” She snapped, “Whisper you accusations to me, and we could have negotiated! You could have walked out of there with half my take and the best damn lay of your life!” Anger and frustration tinged her tone, remembering the feel of his cock against her backside, thick and hard for her. The kiss he stole to cover his ploy. “Four fucking sixes! Dammit, I should have known you were cheating!”

The thief was a lissom figure of grace as she dove through the shattered window, and he was hot on her heels. He struck the cobbled stones of the street beyind with a grunt, booted feet slipping a little before he found his purchase and started moving. She had a good twenty or thirty pace lead on him, but he caught up by the end of the first block. "And I blame you for this!" he barked, gesturing backwards at the mob that pursued them.

Quite a large mob, actually. Apparently the local gamblers didn't care for thieves. Or, he admitted to himself, cheaters.

"You just had towaAH!" His words were lost asshe caught his hand and jerked, sending him spinning into an alley and smacking into the wall. She ended up against the wall as well, and when he tried to move away she pulled again. Suddenly he was pressed against her, her body flattened against his as he found himself staring into her dark eyes. Gods, but she felt magnificent!

And then he froze. Not a dozen feet away, torchlight shone red as the leading fringe of the mob reached it. "Crazy bitch," he hissed angrilly, his face close to hers. "You've doomed us both!"

"They've headed for the docks!" a voice called, and his breath became shallow as he waited. It was dark in here, yes. But surely... no, Barabbas be praised! They were leaving.

And then the crazy bitch thief slapped him across the face. "Idiot!" she snarled. "You catch me with my hand in your pocket and your response is to declare it to the entire bar?"

"My response," he snarled back, "was to cut out your fucking heart! You should be greatful that all I did was..."

"Whisper your accusations to me, and we could have negotiated!" Anger flared in her eyes. "You could have walked out of there with half my take and the best damn lay of your life!"

Now that was a statement to stir the blood and quicken the manhood, but he'd be damned if he admitted that to this thief. "The fuck I would've," he sneered, even as he imagined her stripped naked and writhing beneath him. "You've got nothing I haven't had from a hundred other cheap whores."

"Four fucking sixes!" she laughed, mocking. "Damnit, I should have known you were cheating!"

Hypocritical as it was, that final statement made him furious. "I don't cheat," he growled. "I am an artist with dice and cards!" Her mocking expression enraged him more and he slammed her back into the wall, his iron grip bruising her throat.

He'd intended to slap her around, but the adrenaline of the chase and the lust inspired by her splendid body mingled with his rage and suddenly he wws kissing her. His right hand was locked around her throat still, but the left - the ine he'd rsised to strike her - was tearing at her blouse and squeezing her breast. "I don't see half your winnings," he breathed, staring into her dark eyes as he ground his hard cick against her. "So you'd best be one fucking good lay..."

“Cheap whore?” She shot back, the barb stinging more than she cared to admit “I was in your pocket, faq’haa, and I know you couldn’t afford me.”So she turned it back on him. "Four fucking sixes!" she laughed, mocking. "Dammit, I should have known you were cheating!" Clearly he didn’t appreciate her remark, from the way his hand tightened around her neck, constricting her gasp as he slammed her back into the wall. Before she could retaliate with a punch to the gut he was kissing her, forcing his tongue in her mouth and half down her throat. He fondled at her breast, more coins spilling out against his rough attention. She moaned as his cock pressed into her, seemingly even harder and thicker as he choked and groped her.

"So you'd best be one fucking good lay..."

Bringing an arm up between them, she broke his stranglehold on her, pushing him back against the opposite wall. Before he could react, she ripped open his shirt, sharp nails drawing blood from his chest. “I’m a curse, Ba-tal” She growled, going for the jugular, sharp teeth tearing into his skin until she drew blood. “After you’ve had me, every other woman will pale in comparison.” She kissed him this time, fingers tight in his hair, pulling from the scalp to keep him close. “Memories of this night will haunt you forever.”

Her free hand reached into his pants, gripping and stroking his staggeringly thick cock. “No wonder you’re an idiot. How can you possibly use your brain and this at the same time?”

He gasped in pain as her nails tore his shirt and his skin, and gasped again as her teeth tore at his throat. Then she was pushing him backwards, her lips salty with his blood as she kissed him, and the taste of his last Devon her tongue e was sweeter than the nectar of the gods. And he gasped again as her hands hands fisted in his hair and squeezed tight around his cock. “No wonder you’re an idiot. How can you possibly use your brain and this at the same time?”

In response he caught a fistful of her hair and jerked, bowing her body. He leaned forward, biting hard at her bare breasts as he finished ripping her blouse open. "Couldn't afford you?" he laughed, leaving bruises on the soft dusky skin as his teeth worried her flesh. "What could you possible Bly have that's so special?"

He pushed forward, slamming her back roughly into the mud brick of the opposite walk. She gasped at the impact and released his hair, allowing him to catch her wrist and pin it above her head. Before she could respond he released her throat to cup a breast, biting hard on the nipple as he released her wrist and grabbed her throat again.

"Let me see what!s so special..." He mocked, tearing at the laces of her tight breeches. His hand pushed inside, working hard to move between taught flesh and taught leather, and his cock pulsed to find her shorn and without underwear. "Bah," he sneered, two fingers thrusting into her wet, silken folds. She clenched around him, and he began stroking in and out. "That's it?" he growled, voice thick with lust as his thumb found her clit. "It's a good thing I am so large, or I wouldn't feel a thing in this sloppy cunt of yours."

“Sloppy?” She snarled, “What’s wrong, never felt wet lips wrapped around you before? Women don’t usually get hot at the thought of taking you?” She groaned as he forced her open, tight against his calloused fingers as he teased her clit. She pulled his fingers from her slit, bringing them right to her mouth, to lick at the musk at lingered there. Not straying her gaze, she sucked on his digits, slurping every last drop from his hand. Not that she would let him taste.

“No, I don’t think you deserve to savor my honey,” she spat, “not with your deficient palate.” Still, she shimmied out of her pants, determined to prove him wrong about her. Determined to make him praise the Gods as she wretched his climax from him.

“It is a good thing you are so large, because I don’t think this will take overly long,” She taunted, clenching him even harder between her fingers, “It is why you are hesitating, no? To make me think it’s lasting longer than it really will?” She stroked his length a few times more, biting her lip to suppress the shudder as how rock hard he was. “Maybe I’ll save myself the trouble and just finish you off right quick. Spare you the trouble of this sloppy pussy.”

The thought of her stroking him to orgasm, of painting her dusky flesh and staining her corset with his thick pearlescent seed was intoxicating. But no. He wanted to split this teasing, thieving cunt on his thick rod. To wring a powerful orgasm out of her and make her beg for him. "Quick?" he snarled, fingers tightening on her throat. "Oh, no... this won't be over quick." Gods, she was so fucking tight around his fingers!

When her mouth opened to gasp for air he was on her, sucking her taste from her lips and moaning at the flavor. Even second hand, her juices savored of heaven. His free hand snaked under her ass, and the muscles in hus arm and back writhed like serpents as he lifted her. "You owe me," he growled, "and I plan to take it out of you!"

With a single powerful thrust he drove himself as deep into her as he could, only the hand she still had wrapped around his meat preventing him from filling her completely. She wasn't a tiny woman, but even with that obstacle there was a shocking amount of cock filling her. He groaned loow in his throat as he felt her walls part and then clench around his length. "Never had anything like that between your legs, I wager!" he crowed.

He began slamming his hips forward in powerful thrusts, battering her fist into her cunt as he pounded deep into her. Each thrust scraped and slammed her naked ass against the rough brick. "What's the matter?" he taunted voice harsh in an attempt to hide his pleasure at the way her walls gripped and held his length. "Can't handle a real man's meat?"

Her head lulled back against the brick way as her filled her. He was just as thick as she had suspected, parting her with gruff friction. She grunted as he fucked up into her, struggling to take all of him. And he had the nerve to call her sloppy.

“Is that all you…got?” She tried taunting, tried acting hard. But it clearly wasn’t working. Not with the way her eyes rolled in the back of her head, or the way her lust dripped down his meat. “I thought you’d barely feel it?” She roared, hand no long gripping him, just moving to stroke her clit. “I thought I was too used up for you to enjoy?”

Sharpen nails clawed down his back as her body learned to accept every inch of him. Craving this rough fucking, even if she wasn’t going to be able to walk straight tomorrow. She could feel his blood drip along her finger tips, the same temperature as his skin, beading with sweat as he drove past her tightness. Her fingers worked at her clit, greedy to reach her release, to make him feel it, to see if the cocky sonuva bitch could actually fuck her through it.

Angry screams burst from her lips as her body seized around her, slippery fold closing like her fist had around his cock. “Fuck me!” She demanded, sharp barks of words as her body demanded release. He might take this as a victory, she wasn’t sure. Wasn’t sure she even cared, as she chased hungrily after climax. All she did know was that he sure as hell wouldn’t call her sloppy again.

He ignored the stinging pain in his back, letting her sharp nails drive him to batter mercillesly at her dripping cunt. "Fuck me!" she screamed, fingers working her clit as she clenched around him. In response, gritting his teeth against the urge to spend himself in her, he dragged his cock from her bidy.

"Nuh-uh," he sneered, pinning her hands above her head, his drenched cock smearing her juices on her corset. "I make the demands! Turn around." When she didn't comply he spun her, crossing her wrists abive her head as he pressed her bare thighs and breasts into the rough wall. "None of this bullshit with your fingers," he whispered, rubbinh his slick cock in the crevice of her rear as he bit painfully at her ear. "When you cum, you won't be able to claim you did it." His fingers dug into the flesh of her hip, pulling her out from the wall. "Spread," he snapped.

She wasn't fast enough, so he kicked her ankles apart to widen her stance. Teeth dug into her shoulder, ripping flesh and drawing blood as he roughly drove his meat back into her dripping cunt. "Fuck you?" he taunted as powerful thrusts slammed her into the wall and his free hand slapped her ass with stinging force. "Fuck you?" His tongue traced her back, lapping up the thin trail of blood that dripped from his bite. "I'm going to fucking use you!"

His free hand twisted in her hair, jerking her head back as he slammed into her. He kissed her roughly, forcing her to taste her blood on his tongue. "I'm going to... to... fuck you raw!" he gasped, fighting his own urgent need. "Gonna... fill you... with my... my cum... while you... you cum... on this thick... cock." He released her hair, gripping her throat again. Gods but he wanted to cum! Her body was playing his like an instrument! But he wouldn't give her the satisfaction. Instead he bit her again, pounding her mercilessly into the wall as he did.

He slammed her back into the wall, the bricks cool and rough on her skin. Almost as rough as his teeth had been, in creating the dark welts and bruises on her breasts and neck. She shivered as he whispered in her ear, punctuated with a bite. Why she was letting him do this to her, she didn’t quite comprehend. Any other asshole who tried to force himself on her would have lost his cock and possibly his life by now. Was it really just because this brutal fucking felt so good?

Still, she wasn’t about to just take it, let him use her for his pleasure. He was determined to take credit for her orgasm? Fine, she would force his as well then. At least, she would, once he released her flesh from his teeth. Howling, as he buried teeth and cock within her, she moved against him, swallowing every dense inch of his meat, taking him, and making him feel her. He tried to distract her with a bloodstained kiss, and it almost worked, shuddering as she tasted her coppery viate on his lips.

Each thrust he gave was met with her own, her firm ass smacking into his tight abs. Each time he connected with her far barrier, she clenched, squeezing his shaft until it damn near hurt. She answered his feral grunts with her own animalistic cries. She knew she was getting close, her body hungering for rapture, hungering for his steamy seed to flood her channel. The thought excited and angered her, that he was so gods damn good to force an orgasm from her. Still, she held on tight, strained howls echoing in their alleyway, as she waiting for him to cum, before she let go.

His eyes went wide as she tightened around him, gripping his meat so hard he couldn't withdraw. "By the gods," he gasped, lost in the sensation. What a woman! Far from being intimidated by him, she was giving as good as she took! Meeting him thrust for thrust and fucking him back as he plundered her body!

There were no words, now. No taunts or threats or anything. Just animal sounds of lust, grunts and gasps wrung from his lips as flesh struck flesh. No longer gripping her wrists he explored her magnificent body with hands and lips and tongue and teeth, losing himself in carnal pleasure. His hips jerked rhythmically, forcing her whole body to move as her tight, slick sheath squeezed and milked his shaft.

His orgasm was entirely unexpected. Her whole body seemed to clench around him, and suddenly he threw his head back and roared his pleasure into the night. His balls tightened and his cock seemed to swell within her, and then stream after stream of thick, hot seed pumped into her, mingling with her juices to drip down his shaft and her thighs as he filled her to overflowing.

The first jet of seed into her core was glorious. She didn’t have to hold back any longer, a deep guttural cry of relief escaping her throat. Her orgasm drained every drop of pleasure from his meat, her body seeming to drink in his release. He was hot and hard against her as they recovered together, his heart pounding at the same rhythm as her own, his breath tickling the back of her neck. It was nice, and the thought annoyed her.

“Get off me,” She growled, pushing him away. He was just another man. Another man she wouldn’t even have to see again, when she left port the day after tomorrow. She staggered to pick up her pants, and put them back on, even as she was covered in the proof of their liaison. Stinking of him, though if she were being perfectly honest, it wasn’t really a stink. Wild and masculine and musky, there was an appeal. The same appeal of his firm figure and piercing eyes and rapier wit. She sighed loudly. She was just another cheap whore to him, and he wasn’t worth her time, even if she left her trembling from bliss.

Dressed with her pants back on, and her top tied over her breasts, she looked back at him. Say something, her mind hissed at her. Flirt or insult or tease or thank him. Just say something. But nothing came out, and she left without even a goodbye, shaky legs not hiding how good he had given it to her.

She did head to the docks, this time. And despite her taunts, fucking him had taken some time, time enough for the mob hunting them to disperse. So she wobbled to The Silken Siren where a couple of her crew were on deck, drinking and laughing.

“Did you have a helluva night,” a redhead questioned, holding up a nearly finished bottle of rum “Or we are all gon hafta grab steel and stab a motherfucker?” Aurelia took the bottle to the head to avoid answering, but eyes bored into her.

“It was alright,” She lied, setting the empty bottle on the table. She could see the look of disbelief on the women’s faces and she retracted. “It was decent, but he was an asshole.”

“Assholes are the worst, aren’t they? Especially when they know they are a good fucking lay. Hard to enjoy getting off when they won’t shut up about it,” the woman with the dark skin and bright eyes complained, opening a new bottle and pouring some shots.

“The trick, Ayanna,” the redhead started, taking a shot before continuing, “is to ride their face, so you can enjoy yourself without having to hear their mouth. Put that tongue to good use.” Even Aurelia had to laugh at that, sharing a shot with her crew.

“Anything happen tonight, Gwynn?” she asked the redhead, leaning against the mast for the moment. Gwynn shook her head.

“Nah, nearly everyone is back already. Delinda and Mei are still out, and Phedra dropped off some money before heading back out, with Seith.” Aurelia nodded at this. She insisted that her crew try to work in pairs, keep an eye out for each other, have each other’s backs. She just didn’t take her own advice all that much.

“Alright, I am going to try and get some sleep. Supposed to meet with this Nasir al-Udan about hiring on some extra protection in the morning.” She explained, taking another long pull off the bottle. “Night you two.”
Ayanna turned back toward Gwynn as Aurelia stumbled off towards her room. “So…can I ride your face?” she teased.

“Why don’t you ride this instead?” Gwynn asked, holding up a single offensive finger.

Maybe I should keep this one was his first coherent thought after he came. Because by the gods she was incredible. And the thought of a second and even a third bout, perhaps accompanied by wine and silken sheets was appealing. But... no. He'd be far too much at risk of becoming besotted, and a leader of men could hardly allow himself such luxuries. Not when they were such men as he led, at least.

So, rather than say anything, he fumbled at his breeches and drew them back up, belting them around his waist without regard for the way his cock was still damp with their mutual lust. His shirt was a wreck, shredded and torn as she'd dragged it from his body, so he used it to wipe the blood and sweat from his chest and tossed it aside. Then he watched with smug pleasure as she limped away, walking carefully from the thorough fucking he'd given her. Perhaps, the next time he visited this city, he'd try to get his pocket picked again. But for now?

Now he needed rest. He'd be negotiating the final terms of the contract he'd been offered, and needed to be at his best.

---

"You still look like hell," commented the older man.

Yusef sipped dark, bitter coffee from a small cup and grimaced, not liking the way the sun blazed through the windows of the kahvesiri. "And you hover like an old woman, Senzang," he grumbled back. "I'm fine. I'll be fine for handling the negotiations."

Lounging back on the cushions, Fayette cackled loudly at that. "Really? Because you looked better last night."

"If I wanted your opinion..." glowered Yusef.

"And last night," she continued, draining the last of her cup, "when you dragged yourself in, I thought we were going to go have to murder a whole bunch of people."

"I didn't ask," he growled.

"And that's stopped me when?" she countered. "Seriously, though... you sure you were fucking? Because you looked like you got mauled by a tiger."

"Our captain has strange tastes," Sanzang commented dryly.

"Now that you're done," Yusef snapped, "could you try to remind me why I brough you two?"

"Because," Fayette drawled, pouring herself another cup, "Eitoku's terrible with numbers. Kaarim would just eyefuck whoever showed up to negotiate, man or woman. And Igama and Muhyddeen would just grunt and posture and threaten."

"You just grunt and posture and threaten," Yusef pointed out.

"It's true," Sanzang commented as Fayette adopted an outraged expression. "But you have the virtue of knowing when it is appropriate."

All of that was true, of course. Sanzangakona Ulwazi was a font of wisdom and a trusted advisor, and a man that could have easily wrested control of the band from him had he chosen to do so. And Fayette, for all her ill temper, could make coins bleed and perform magic with the finances of the band. Both of them would be vital adjutants to his negotiations. "I guess you're right," he muttered, putting on a show of resignation. "I'll just have to make do."

He downed a few bites of lamb kebab and honeyed bread, and cocked his head at the door. "Assuming our contact ever arrives, that is."

“Morning Captain,” The man called as pushed this way into her room, letting the light in, “Tea? Or a bit of hair of the dog?” Aurelia rubbed her eyes as he came in, placing the steaming tea on the desk nearby.

“Both,” she decided without much thought, taking a quick swig to take the edge of her hangover. To take the edge of the rough fucking she had received, with her shoulder still throbbing from where he had bit into her. She stood, much more stable after a nights rest, but there was still a pleasant ache in memory of Yusef. “Is it really morning already?”

“For some time, yes,” He explained, with those laughing eyes and serene smile. It was misleading, the pleased tranquility he kept on his face where he was reviewing the books, obliterating his opponent in Go or sheathing his wakizashi in the gut of a foe, in space of a blink. “We really should be leaving shortly, if we aren’t to insult this…” He trailed off to let her fill in the blank.

“Nasir al-Udan,” Aurelia answered, picking out an outfit for the day, “And we are pirates, Nishi, a bit of lateness is factored into these meetings.” A deep red captain’s coat, she decided. To look the part of captain, rather than former slave. Paired with tight leather pants and shiny boots, she looked authoritative enough. “Is Safia ready yet?”

“FUCK!”The syllable pierced the captain’s chambers, “You’re about to get added to my forearm Nehime, if you yank on my hair again.”

“Almost ready,” Nishi surmised, amused. They exited her room together, to see slender Nehime working braids into Safia’s hair. The smaller women looked to the Captain with apology in her golden eyes. In the north it was said such things were proof a goddess had chosen you. Edana’s sister Afo…something. But in the north they also fought the demons, and bleed themselves dry doing so, most people in the Jeweled Archipelago took their ideas with little heart. Living amongst the demons worked well enough, so long as you knew your place and didn’t make eye contact.

“I keep telling her tight braids are the way to go,” Nehime defended herself, finishing off the plait.

“That’s between the two of you,” Aurelia stated, not of a mind to get into an argument over hair this day, “Is she ready to go with me?”

“I’m ready Captain,” Safia insisted, grabbing her modified khopesh, before Nehime could start another row. The mix of braids and natural hair gave her a fierce look, that might indeed work in their favor as they headed off to the meeting.

“So, remind me why we are hiring more muscle on the ship, Captain?” Safia as they made their way to the meeting spot.

“Because we are doing well, and when you are doing well, there is always someone looking to tear you down,” Aurelia justified.

“And? We handle ourselves well enough,” Safia shot back.

“It’s a numbers game, Safia,” Nishi started, “consider it the cost of doing business.”

“These guys were recommended by Ashur, and are supposed to be very good, and loyal, so long as they get paid,” Aurelia enlightened, as the approached the destination, “and since he arranged this meet for us, it would be rude to not at least treat with them.” She pushed aside the curtain, calling into the kahvesiri “Good to meet you, Nas-“The words abandoned her throat as she came face to face with the man who had fucked her brains out last night.

"There's someone coming now," Fayette observed, watching the shadows cast on the curtain across their private nook. As she said it, she loosened her rapier in its sheath, indulging in a bit of paranoia that had kept her alive and reasonably intact for years.

"How many?" Yusef asked, making sure the hilt of his scimitar was positioned well even as he adopted a studiedly casual air. Senzang, for his part, simply leaned forward and rested his chin on his cane. You'd have to know the older man well to know that he could brutally kill a man with that slender shaft of ironwood.

Fayette studied the shadows for a moment. "Two, I think."

"Well, that's good odds if they aren't our..." He fell silent, jaw dropping as the crazy bitch thief he'd fucked hard pulled the curtain aside. Senzang and Fayette glanced at him, then at her, then at him again.

"What. The. Fuck?" Fayette asked.

Senzang lifted an eyebrow. "It would seem we've met a tiger," he said with a slight grin.

Yusef exploded to his feet. "Gods of Hell, woman!" he thundered. "What demons have I slighted, what sacrifices have I forgotten, that you darken my day once more?"

An unamused laugh left Aurelia’s lip as she tried to hide her annoyance at the revealed identity of her contact. “I do believe I warned you ahead of time I am a curse, Ba-tal,” She mocked, forcing a smirk. She fished into her coat pocket, pulling out a wrinkled correspondence, “But I may be in the wrong place today. I am looking for a …” She read the letter cursed to herself silently, “…A Nasir Yusef al-Udan.” She nearly turned to leave at that, before Nishi nudged her back around.

Nishi chuckled at her side, whispering, “Now captain, are we really going to let a regretful evening color our biases here? Half of our business is regretful evenings.” He turned towards the mercenaries, wearing that nonthreatening smile upon his lips, “Nishi Saburo, bookkeeper for Captain Seabourne.” He bowed ever so slightly, leaving enough space for Safia to enter as well, taking a silent appraisal of everyone.

Aurelia weighed the pros and cons of this particular endeavor in her mind, and tried to ignore the red mark she had left on his neck, or the throbbing twin he had left on hers. He was a liar and a cheat, yet a successful enough cheat to go unnoticed by her for several hours. Either he was impressive, or she was losing her edge, neither of which she was willing to admit. But he could also handle himself in a fight, and he was strong…Dammit, this would be easier if we were a bad lay!

“Look, I don’t know if you are up to this kind of work,” She explained, crossing her arms. “We have many enemies, and are really only looking for the very best.”

The slender, pretty man whispered something to the crazy bitch thief, then turned his attention to the assembled mercenaries. “Nishi Saburo, bookkeeper for Captain Seabourne.”

Realizing after a moment that Yusef wasn't going to say anything, Fayette cleared her throat. "Fayette Cerylia, bookkeeper and quarter master for the Free Company of al-Udan. The man across from me is our chiurgeon and solicitor, Senzangakona Ulwazi, and this man..." She elbowed Yusef sharply in the ribs, drawing a cry of pain from him. "The one gasping like a beached fish and not impressing our new client at all is our captain, Nasir Yusef al-Udan."

Yusef tried to get his brain out of his crotch and into gear. Fayette was right, after all. Regardless of whether or not she was crazy, or a thief, or a great fucking lay she was also his potential new employer. And that meant looking sharp and sounding competent. Not squalling in shock about learning that a great piece of ass attached to sticky fingers was offering the coin. "Yeah," he began, straightening up a little. "I..."

“Look, I don’t know if you are up to this kind of work,” She explained, crossing her arms. “We have many enemies, and are really only looking for the very best.”

"Oh, I think you already know I'm the be..." He grimaced as Fayette stamped her heel down on his foot. "Best," he finished, glaring at his quartermaster. "Right off the bat, Ashur vouched for us. And you know that tight-fisted son of a bitch wouldn't willingly recommend anyone without reason. And that reason is that, even though we're a small band, we're very good at what we do. And versatile. Half my crew has some degree of magical training. I've got an alchemist, a chiurgeon, a blacksmith, six sailors, four philosophers, and a diviner." He chuckled. "Also, and more importantly for your specific needs, have you ever heard of the ul-Abaquan 'Califate'?"

"I'm sure you have," Senzang added. "The hundred-strong pirate fleet centered out of ul-Abaquan? The one that stopped harassing shipping through the Straits of Kemmat about two years ago?"

"That was us," Yusef said. "We're the reason they aren't a problem anymore." He didn't bother to mention that the reason had been due to a falling-out with the Calif-Admiral, which had led to him personally cutting the man's throat on the deck of his flagship in a dispute over division of spoils before he and his crew had been forced to cut their way out of the island city Negarath, City of Sharks. Leaving three score ships and half the city aflame in the process. Good times, those.

Aurelia managed a blank face as Yusef assured her that she already knew he was the best. She certainly wasn't thinking how his mouth felt on hers, or how his hand glided up her body, or how he filled with his meat. He made a convincing case, and the truth was, they did have a hell of a reputation. A small crew that functioned as though it had twice as many members. It was the perfect fit (not unlike the way their bodies moved together last night...)

Clearing her throat and her mind, Aurelia spoke, "You may very well be what we are looking for." She nodded to Nishi, who produced a ledger book. "This is what we are prepared to offer you." It was more than Ashur had quoted her, but Aurelia wanted to ensure loyalty. It was something that had to be earned and worked at, in the long term, but in the meantime a generous purse would generally suffice.

"A few ground rules. I generally discourage relations among the crew. Romantic entanglement rarely end well, and breakups are disastrous within the small quarters of a ship. That said, we are all adults here, and confined on a ship for weeks at a time, things occasionally happen. So long as everything is respectful and discrete, I will hold my tongue."

"We are leaving tomorrow morning to sail for Garabahad, so I need a quick answer

Yusef bristled when Aurelia - he'd finally remembered her name from Ashur's message - said no romantic entanglements. Entirely because of the way Fayette and Senzang glanced him, like he wasn't going to be professional. Not because he was remebering the taste of her blood and sweat, and the feel of her body straining against his. Not at all. Perish the thought.

But her offer of compensation was generous, enough so that the cynical Fayette lifted an eyebrow. Slightly. "Tomorrow, hey? Well, it'll take time to get my men together," he lied, reflexively warming to the task of negotiating for more. "We'll..."

"Accept you terms of employment," Senzang said, interrupting and studiously ignoring his captain's glare. "The terms sound fine as described, although I'll want to review any actual contract before we sign."

"What are you doing?" Fayette hissed as Senzang conferred with their new employer.

"Trying to get more out of..." Yusef began.

"Are you fucking mad?" she demanded. "Money's good, and we kind of need to get the hell out of this city."

"Yeah, well..."

"Did you forget that the prince wants to cut Kaarim's balls off fir what he did to his daughter and his wife? Or that Eitoku and Igama got the Sons of the Scorpion hunting us all."

"We can still get..."

She made a strangled sound of irritation. "Seriously. We need this. Don't fuck this up for us."