Amazon Companion (52 page)

"You won't learn anything," she said.

"I will for the first part, won't I?"

"Yes."

"And if every day we do this, if I can resist your best, even for a few seconds, we will know I am improving. And I will know what it is like to face the best."

"I am not a demon, Maya."

"Humor me."

She shook her head, but we squared off, and
Omie called, "Begin."

I launched myself at Nori. She parried me easily, and we exchanged thrusts and strikes. She parried me easily and pressed me back, but attacking with no more than I could handle, testing me. Then I made a large mistake, leaving myself wide open, and she spanked me solidly with the flat of the sword.

"Point to Nori," Omie called. "Again."

I actually almost got a point on Nori when she grew too casual, and I grinned at her. In exchange, she beat my sword away, then did some twisting motion, and the sword
flew from my grip. Too quickly to see, her sword rested against my neck.

"Point to Nori."

I collected my sword, and we did it again. And again. Five points total.

"Once more," I whispered. "Let me keep my sword, but really humiliate me."

"That's ridiculous," she said.

"Do it."

"No."

"I need to see it. Trust me."

"Omie," she said, "this last bout has no referee."

"All right,"
Omie said.

And Nori launched herself at me. I never saw it coming. She beat aside my blade and slapped my shoulder with her sword. She waited just a moment, allowing me to raise my sword, and she reached out and wrapped the top of my hand. Over and over, her sword slapped against me until finally I slumped. "Enough," I told her.

She handed her sword away, then stepped forward and took mine, handing it to Omie. "What was that?" she asked me.

I hugged her. "That was you doing what I asked. Thank you."

I released her and turned to Omie. "Time to run?"

She nodded, and I didn't wait. I ran.

Later, Malora asked me about it. "I wanted to know," I said. "When I can hold her off, I know I'm improving. Don't fight me on this, Malora. Just be happy I am training and allow me my foibles. Now, I have another foible."

"Oh?"

* * * *

"At the end, she
humiliated me," I told Lathana, "beating aside my sword and striking me, over and over, until finally I begged for no more."

"I admit, I would humiliate you if you did not please me. Humiliation is such a powerful tool, when applied carefully. Please go on."

"After that, I was forced to run, and run, and run, until I could run no more. In the past, they would whip me if I lagged, but yesterday I did not lag, and so I was not whipped."

She was silent for a moment, and then she spoke carefully. "If you come to me, I will promise not to whip you. You are far too valuable to treat so."

I finished the story, and soon Lathana was gone for the day.

I smiled, sure she was gone. I told the story in great detail and complete honesty, and she believed what I wanted her to believe. I was mistreated here
, badly mistreated, and I was a poor warrior. And I was indeed a poor warrior, but perhaps not as poor as she believed.

Winter arrived, but winter was not a respite from training.

"Good," said
Omie to me. "Watch my chest, not my sword. Again."

I attacked, and we fought, back and forth across the ground, and then I slipped past her guard, my sword running along the upper part of her sword arm.

"Hold!" she yelled, stepping back. She glanced down at my sword, still resting along her arm, her own sword well out of line to attack me. "That would have sliced me to the bone!"

I grinned. "I believe it would."

She stepped forward and hugged me tightly.

"Did you let me do that?"

"I would never," she said. "You earned that. But I admit, I am not the swordsman Nori is, or even Vorine. Still, I am very proud of you!"

I stepped away, and I saw Malora watching me. She nodded, smiling. I grinned at her.

"I think we end on a high note today," Omie said.

"Oh no," I said. "Maybe you and I end on a high note, but I must have my bout with Nori or Malora. It is important to me."

She turned to the two of them, watching us. "She doesn't give up," Omie said. "Who is it today?"

"My turn, I guess," Malora said. "I don't like this part, Maya."

"Tough." And I launched myself at her, almost catching her off guard. She let me fight well for a minute, like they always did, then she slipped past my guard and scored a line across my arm, the same as I had with Omie.

She got her five points, some of them stinging badly, and then I said, "now
for real," and she attacked.

I fended off her first two attacks, and she stepped back. "Well done!"

"Shut up, Malora," I said. She narrowed her eyes.

"Very well." She came after me, and she was brutal, beating me badly, over and over, until I begged her to stop. She stopped instantly, then pulled me into her arms. "Why? Every day
that we practice with swords, you ask for this. Why?"

"I held you off. Didn't I? Those were real attacks, and I held you off."

"Yes, you did. Why did you try to anger me?"

"You must do this my way, Malora. Please do not fight me on this."

"It doesn't make sense, but you are getting better."

"Could I beat a demon?"

She didn't answer right away then finally said, "If you caught it by surprise or if you had help."

"You mean if you helped, but you can kill one alone."

"You and Omie could kill one together, but Omie has had no luck killing one alone."

"Then I am getting better, but I am not good enough."

"You will never be good enough. Hard work will only take you so far."

"We shall see."

She hugged me more tightly. "I couldn't be prouder, Maya."

We separated, but she said, "You should take time to prepare for our trip. We are busy this afternoon."

"All right," I said. "After my run." I paused. "Make me run fast, if we will not be running for a few days."

"What do you mean, make you run fast?"

"Incentive."

"No!"

"Make me run fast, or you won't get any affection tonight. Please, Malora."

"Fine, start running, and I will make sure you run fast."

I handed my sword to Bea and began to run. I ran, but then I intentionally lagged, and Malora know it was intentional. She caught me with the whip, and I yelped and sped up. Twice more I slowed, deciding that was enough, and then I ran, ran, ran, until finally Malora ran with me and said, "Enough, Maya."

That night, after Malora and I made love, I kissed her and said, "I wish to take a walk and breathe the night air. I am going to meditate for a time."

"You can meditate here."

"I am contemplating something, and I wish quiet. I may not have it while we are gone. Don't worry. I love you."

I slipped from bed and dressed for the weather, and then I slipped away to the place near the river. I had to be careful, as the rocks were slick with ice. I had a pad, and I set it down, then sat down on the pad.

I called her.

She was surprised. "We already talked today."

"I wanted to hear your voice," I said. "Do you have time to talk to me?"

"Of course. I always have time for you, all the time you could desire." She trilled, and I closed my eyes. Her trills were addictive, and I enjoyed them. She knew it, and she did it often.

"You have never summoned me twice in a
day, and I detect you left your warrior's bed to seek me."

"She beat me today."

"She did?"

I told her how Malora beat me with the sword, and then when I ran too slowly, she whipped me. "Can you feel my discomfort?"

"If you give me permission to do so."

"It is not bad. Feel." And I rubbed my bottom. "It hurt more earlier."

"Your warrior is unkind to you," she said. "You work hard to please her, and it is not enough for her. If you worked so hard for me, I would trill in your ears and give you pleasures you can only imagine."

"I know," I said. "I think about that a lot."

She was quiet for a moment, then said cautiously, "I do not detect a lie."

"I have never lied to you," I replied. "Never."

She trilled again, her pleasure evident.

"Do you wish to be mine?"

"I think about what it would be like, what it might have been like, if you had taken me through the portal. But it will never happen." I paused. "My warrior would not let me go to you. She would come for me, and even with a head start, she is so much faster than I am. I could never get away. I do not want to talk about that more tonight, though, so you must not ask."

"We will talk more another time then," she said.

"I have a problem you can solve," I said.

"I would like to help solve your problem."

"When we started, I warned you there would be times I could not come to you every day."

"Ah, the real reason we are talking?"

"I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to hear your trill." I paused. "I want my reward," I said in a small voice.

"What reward have you earned?"

"It is late. You asked me two weeks ago to pick a fight with my warrior. Today I did. I told her to shut up in front of everyone."

I could feel her pleasure. "And did you fight?"

"Yes."

She paused. "I like talking to you, too, Maya. You bring me pleasure." And I felt a mental caress that almost put me over the edge, leaving me panting
, my reward for doing her bidding. She had been getting better and better at that, and if Malora didn't make love to me with such skill, I was sure I would be begging Lathana to do it.

"Enough," I said eventually. "Oh Lathana, enough."

"Oh, I don't think so, but maybe that is another conversation for another day. Are you coming to a time you may not summon me?"

I took a moment to collect myself.
"We are taking a trip. There will be days I will not have a moment alone, and I will be too exhausted at night to slip away and give you the attention you deserve. But the problem is, I do not know which days I can summon you, and which I can't. I do not control my schedule."

"How many days?" she asked, her voice filled
with caution.

"The last trip was ten. This one may be longer, perhaps as long as twice that, or perhaps not."

"I will not accept such a lengthy break. We must have a solution."

"What do you propose?"

"You will accrue debt, any day I do not receive a proper conversation with you. You will owe two conversations in a day to fill the debt, plus a penalty."

"What penalty?"

"You must give me permission to touch your body during the second conversation, the debt conversation."

"What type of touch?"

"I will not rape you," she said. "The same touches I gave you before."

"Oh," I said. I grinned. "Can you scratch an itch on my back?"

She trilled. "For you, yes," and then it felt like her long claws were gently scratching my back. It felt quite nice, actually.

"I agree to your terms," I said. "But I may not be able to repay the entire debt one day after the next."

"You will repay the debt as you are best able. I require one more agreement. If we go three days in a row without a proper discussion, then you must let me stay with you for the entire fourth day."

"You will leave during private times with my warrior or anyone else I am comforting. I do not believe I can be
a companion while you are watching, and our agreement is I may remain a companion."

"Agreed," she said.

"If there is some sort of catastrophe, I may not be able to give you much time on that fourth day. I do not expect that, but if a warrior needs a companion, they turn to me."

"You will not seek to use my gentle nature to cheat me."

"Of course not."

"Is your itch satisfied? I would prefer touching you other ways."

"Yes, thank you. That was nice."

And it had been.

I let her hold me for a while, and she trilled for me. We stayed quiet for a few minutes, then I asked, "Does tonight count as my time tomorrow?"

"If you answer three questions."

"All right."

"Do you love me?"

"I am fond of you," I said. "I have grown to enjoy our time together. I did not think I would. I would miss this if it were to stop. I think I could grow to love you. I do not know if I do. I have not loved many others, so I am not sure I would recognize it right away."

"Is there something about me that frightens you?"

"Your claws," I said. "They feel good when they scratch, but I do not know how you could touch me without damaging my skin."

"I can make them disappear. There would be no claws when I did not need claws."

"You can?"

"I can do many things with this body," she said.
"A great many things."

I thought about it. "If I come into your arms to kiss you, could you be more, I don't know. Delicate? It would be less frightening to me."

"I could, yes," she said. "I would shrink before your eyes for such a kiss. Would you wish me to change my appearance?"

"Only to be more delicate and less frightening," I said. "I find your form fascinating. Was that my third question?"

"And then some, perhaps."

"I must travel far tomorrow, so I must be rested."

"I can help you sleep well and wake refreshed."

"Not here! I'm by the river and must return home.
I would freeze to death if I fell asleep here. I am already growing cold."

"Oh. I am sorry. I do not understand everything you said. Go to your bed, and when you are ready to sleep, say simply, Lathana let me sleep. Say it three times, and you will sleep."

"Malora will hear."

"It is enough to say it in your head."

"Would I be summoning you?"

"No, you would only be accepting my help to sleep."

"Thank you, Lathana."

"I will know you have used my little magic, but I will not invade your dreams. And you may do this other nights, but I will always know."

"Thank you. Do I need to banish you for you to leave."

"No. Your words do not banish me. I leave when I am ready. Good night, Maya Softpeace." And then she trill
ed until it faded away. I climbed to my feet, stiff and cold, and returned home.

Malora was sound asleep. I curled up next to her, and then I thought the words.

Lathana, let me sleep.

* * * *

For the first three days of our trip, I was able to keep my appointments with Lathana, but then on the fourth day, I was too busy all day and could not find a moment away. The same was true the next day. On the third day, I was performing inventory for a village to the north, and I found a time alone. I summoned her.

"Three days?" she asked immediately.

"I know, and I am not sure how much time alone I have, but I missed you."

"What are you doing?"

"I am in the storeroom for one of the villages, doing inventory. The person who normally does it has had a dispute with the village chief, and she has moved to another village. No one else here seems to be able to count sacks of flour with any accuracy. So I must do it."

"Why?"

"First, I must say, you may stay with me while I do this task, and it will take several hours, but if I stop responding to you, it is because someone else is here. And it may be boring, as I need to finish. I will be counting sewing needles soon."

"I must listen to you count sewing needles?"

"And not distract me unduly or I will lose track. But you will get more time than you otherwise get, and you will keep me company during a boring task."