The Destroyer turned to see a tall young Amazon stalking towards her across the village commons, from the direction of the sweat lodge. "Just who do you think you are, outsider, acting so chummy with the Queen Regent?" Her antagonist had long, slightly wavy red hair and deep green eyes that flashed with anger. A normally soft mouth was twisted into a sneer. "Why are you out here without a guard? What makes you think you can show up here like you run the place? I oughtta knock you down a peg."
It occurred to the Destroyer that her foe looked vaguely familiar, but she was too perturbed to think about it. She thinks she can talk to me like that? I got half a mind to – no, no, I ain't here to brawl, not them anyway. Need to keep it together. It's all talk…so far. "Ah, cool it, Red. I'm here to…" Information control, information control! Solari said not to go shooting my mouth off. What a pain in my ass. Sooner I kill Velasca and get outta here the sooner I go back to doing what I want, when I want. "I'm here to help out your tribe. I'm one of the good guys, so get out of my face before I break yours."
"You little punk," the Amazon spat, fuming. "Don't you dare call me Red. My name's Artemisia and you'd do well to remember it, 'cause you'll need to know it when you're begging me for mercy."
The Destroyer chuckled. "Artemisia? Seriously? Your mother couldn't be a bit more creative than that? I think you'd be better off as Red!"
The Amazon known as Artemisia ran at the Destroyer, clenching her fists in preparation for the coming slugfest. "You insult my mother AND my name? I've had it. What's YOUR name, outsider? If you're lucky I'll mark it on your grave for you!"
The shaggy wild woman took a slightly wider stance and got ready to knock Artemisia off her feet. "It's Tira Darkheart to you, Amazon. Like I said, you better thank your goddess we're on the same side or I'd snap that beanpole body in half for you."
"Then let's do it, bitch!" Artemisia cried before stopping abruptly just before striking distance. She appeared to be looking behind her foe. It looked to the Destroyer as if her expression changed to a sulk. "Whatever. I'll be watching you, Tira. We don't need any help from outsiders like you, and I'll prove it to you the first chance I get." With that Artemisia turned in a huff and stormed back in the direction she had come.
"It's Tira Darkheart, are you deaf? You say the whole thing each – aw, dammit. She's not even lookin'." Out of curiosity the Destroyer turned around to see who or what had run Artemisia off and came face to face with Solari. "Oh, you're back from seein' Eponin. She doin' all right?"
"As well as can be expected." Solari smiled, but there was no warmth in her face, and her eyes were hard. "I see you've met my daughter," she drawled.
Dark brown eyes flicked back to the angry redhead, now talking with some other Amazons outside the sweat lodge. "That's your DAUGHTER? Man, what's her problem? I didn't even say anything to her."
"I'm sure you didn't. Artemisia is liable to pick a fight at the slightest provocation, or in your case no provocation. Whatever she said to you, it's just an excuse. You look tough. She wanted to prove she was tougher. Simple as that."
"Why'd she leave like that when you showed up? You wave her off or something?"
"No. I'd have let you kick her around a bit. It would have been good for her. She's brash but she's got the skills to back it up, so she can usually get away with her attitude, as long as she leaves the older warriors alone. You might have managed to knock a little sense into her hard head. She doesn't listen to anything or anybody, especially not me."
"So why'd she turn tail when she saw you, then?"
"She's not speaking to me. If she let me get too close she might have to remind me that she's not speaking to me."
"What? Why?"
Solari sighed and shrugged. "Different reason every day. I stopped trying to keep track. Last month she moved out of my home and into the young women's lodge, and ever since then she's avoided me like I'm diseased."
"That's stupid. You're her mom. She oughtta – wait, thought you said she had it in for everybody?" The Destroyer was looking back at Artemisia again and saw an entirely different Amazon than the one she had nearly fought moments before. The tall redhead was looking down at a shorter woman who was just leaving the sweat lodge. Her manner appeared almost deferential. Artemisia's companion took her hand and led her back towards the village edge. The newcomer had straight ebony hair cut short. As she walked off with Artemisia the Destroyer saw that every visible inch of the dark-haired woman was defined with muscle.
"Everybody but her. I misspoke when I said no one could reach her. She practically worships Elena. Thank the goddess Elena keeps her from doing too many ridiculous things. She'd be completely out of control, otherwise."
"Elena," the young woman mused. She suddenly remembered why Artemisia had looked familiar earlier. Her mind flashed back to a dark corner of the sweat lodge, a scene of passion and pleasure. Pale cheeks reddened once again and the Destroyer pushed the image from her mind before Solari noticed the blush. "So that's her only friend, eh?"
"Not exactly. Her agemates admire her and respect her skills, but she only tolerates them when they accept that she's the boss. If anyone stands up to her there's bound to be a fight. Not with Elena. I think she'd challenge Artemis herself if Elena asked her to." Solari began walking towards where Ephiny was still conferring with some of the warriors. The Queen Regent was seemingly unaware of the argument between Artemisia and their champion. "Fortunately for those of us who would like to have a moment's peace in this camp, Elena is the calmest of all our young women and it rubs off on Artemisia now and again."
"If they're so different what brought them together?"
"Elena beating the stuffing out of Artemisia about five times," Solari laughed. "That's why I don't mind if you have to teach my daughter a hard lesson one of these days. I think it's the only language she understands."
"I better not, seein' as she's your daughter," the Destroyer answered quietly. "Sometimes I get pretty angry, and bad things happen." She stared at her feet and let her hair fall over her face, not wanting Solari to see the burden she carried.
"Do you think you're the only warrior who's struggled with issues of control?" Solari responded, unfazed. "If you're serious about mastering your anger, you can learn."
"Tryin'," the Destroyer muttered. "Being around all these people doesn't help."
"Get yourself into some trouble, Tira Darkheart?" Ephiny, now alone, asked without turning around. She had been completely aware of the earlier altercation.
"Artemisia says our champion is her new best friend," Solari quipped.
"Wonderful," Ephiny sighed, rolling her eyes. "I think you've had enough excitement for one day. Let's find a place for you to sleep, hm?"
The Destroyer lounged comfortably on a spacious straw bed in the center of a sparsely furnished but otherwise adequate room. The sun had dropped below the trees and the window was on the east wall, making the area quite dim. The low light was irrelevant to the large wildcat who sprawled next to his mistress on the mattress. Mendi's attention was repeatedly drawn to a small wood mouse scurrying in the corner.
"Leave it," his companion scolded as she stroked his long brown and gray fur. She scratched his stomach, where the fur tended to tan instead of brown, making him purr with delight. "You'll break something if you chase it in here."
"So?"
"It's not our stuff, Mendi."
"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you about that. You said the Amazons gave you a really nice hut on the edge of the village to stay in, right?"
"They sure did."
"And you'll be left alone unless you want to come out or they absolutely need you for something, right?"
"Yup."
"So, if your place is so great…" Mendi jumped down and paced around the room he was finding increasingly confining. "…why aren't we in there?"
The Destroyer smiled impishly. "You can jump out the window and wait for me there if you want." She shifted on the bed so that she was laid out on her back, hands behind her head, so that her body stretched to its full length. "I wanted to spend some time with you is all, since it's been such a weird day. I had to deal with a lot of humans. Did you know humans are absolutely crazy? I assumed I was the crazy one all these years, but now I think I'm fine. They're the ones with the problem."
"I still don't understand. Why are you in here? Why don't we both go back to your place? I'm sleepy and I don't want to sleep alone here in this strange place."
"I'm waitin' on something, bro, I told ya," she replied impatiently.
"What for? Whose room is this, anyway?"
Just then there was a fumbling sound at the door. Large as he was, Mendi found a way to duck under the bed, leaving only his bushy tail exposed and flicking in annoyance. The Destroyer's grin broadened, becoming almost predatory. The latch clicked open and the door swung in to reveal the master healer holding a candle, his large frame silhouetted by the twilight outside. Upon seeing the stranger lying contentedly on his bed, he yelped with fright and nearly dropped his candle. His uninvited guest was amused to see the strapping young man so unnerved. She looked his features over in the flickering light of his candle as he stood frozen in the doorway. His eyes were dark brown, only a shade lighter than her own, but his hair was much lighter, nearly dirty blonde in color. It spilled sloppily down his head before stopping abruptly at the level of his ears on all sides, having been shaved at the base of his skull. He had a relatively small nose, although it was well-defined, and his jaw was strong and square. The healer was clean-shaven for the most part, but it had been over a day since his last shave and whiskers were evident on his chin. He wore a simple sleeveless vest and loose linen slacks.
"You're Sedgik, right?" the girl asked easily, her eyes narrowed.
"Yes, but – wait, I remember you. I saw you in Eponin's room earlier today. You must be one of the Amazons I haven't met yet."
"Not quite, fella. I'm no Amazon, I can tell ya that."
"Well then, if you don't mind me asking, who are you?"
"I'm the girl who's gonna keep you up late tonight."
Sedgik's eyebrows knitted together in bewilderment. "Uh, right."
That was so stupid. Why did I say that? It sounded completely different in my head! This is not how I thought this was supposed to go down. I feel like an idiot!
"You're going to mate with him?" A fierce feline whisper broke into the young woman's uncertain thoughts. "You could have told me! I've never seen humans rut before. Can I watch?"
"No you cannot watch!" Mendi's mistress hissed back at him under her breath, peeking under the bed. "What is wrong with you? You have problems, bro!"
"Are you all right?" Sedgik asked hesitantly, not having heard the cat speak and not recognizing the exposed tail as anything but a shadow. Scratching his head in confusion, he set his candle in the holder on the small table near the door and shut it behind him. Although he had been startled initially by the stranger's unexpected presence in his bed, his apprehension now mixed with concern.
"Yeah I'm fine absolutely fine no problems here," the Destroyer blurted, bolting upright and flashing Sedgik a broad smile she hoped would exude confidence. Soon realizing the only thing such a smile might exude was her oversized canine killing teeth, she laughed nervously and brushed a hand back through her hair. Good thing it's dark in here. He's expected to lay Amazons, not monsters. Oh shit, what if there's kissing? He'll feel those! Kissing's right out, then. I don't know how to do it anyhow. "So ah, whaddya say? You want a go at me?"
Sedgik shrugged and removed his vest, seeming hesitant. The Destroyer's eyes drank in the sight of the shirtless healer in the candlelight. He was built like a laborer, his upper body well-sculpted and solid. She saw a faint trace of hair on his chest and running down his lower stomach. "Well, it's what I'm here for, I guess. If you don't mind though, I'd really like to know…who are you?"
The Destroyer opened her mouth to answer, then sighed in resignation and looked down. We don't even know each other. This is ridiculous. What was I thinking? "A complete idiot."
Sedgik laughed in spite of himself. He laid his vest on the table next to the candle and approached the strange young woman cautiously. He was not sure why he felt the need to leave some distance between them, but his instincts told him it was a good idea. "I'm sure that's not true."
The brunette swung her legs over the side of the bed and moved over, allowing an arm's length between her and the healer as he sat down next to her, still shirtless. She felt a familiar ache as she glanced over at his body. He was close enough that she drank in his scent. Even though he had been working all day, he smelled better than any person she had ever been close to. Though part of her urged her strongly to tackle the man, she had to admit to herself that she had very little sense regarding what would come after. Eyes up, stupid. Look at him. Talk to him. If you don't explain yourself you'll look even more foolish. He's just a human, after all. Who cares what he thinks? "Yeah, it is. Look, Sedgik, it's like this. Ephiny said that you were the healer but that you were also here to, er, service the Amazons. I was curious so I thought I'd come here and see what it was like. But it's not simple that way. I don't have it in me to just, y'know, do that, barely talkin' to you or anything. So I can't. I mean, shit, I don't even let people touch me, so how did I expect to be able to let you do it just like that?" The Destroyer found herself laughing at how ridiculous her expectations had been. "I'm sorry, man. Didn't mean to disappoint you."
"I'm not disappointed at all," Sedgik replied, smiling easily. "It's not like that for me either. I know I'm supposed to, that is, if any Amazon asks me. But so far no one has and I'm actually a little bit relieved you don't want to. It would be very strange. I'm not even sure I could, ah, perform on cue like that. When I first saw you in here I was more terrified than anything."
"Scared? Really? Big guy like you?"
"Well, I'm not really a fighter. I know I'm strong, but I don't like to use my strength to hurt people. I'd rather help them up than tear them down."
The wild woman laughed in disbelief. "You don't fight. Hah. That's pretty funny." Seeing the earnest expression on his face she realized he meant it. "You're not kiddin'."
"No."
"Wow. Anyway, like I said, sorry 'bout all this, Sedgik. I'll get out of your hut and I won't bother ya again."
"You don't have to, you know. We could sit here and talk."
The Destroyer swallowed hard. "Talk?" More?
"Sure. No one around here really talks to me if they don't have to. The Centaurs were a lot friendlier. I'm pretty sure the Amazons don't care for me being male, but you said you weren't an Amazon anyhow. I'm interested in what brought you here, what you're doing. I never expected another 'outsider' to come along while I was here. Might be nice if we got to know each other a little, don't you think?"
"Well, maybe," the Destroyer grunted, staring at her toes. Seeing Mendi's tail still poking out from under the bed, she was struck with an idea. She used her foot to tug on her cat's tail until he emerged from his hiding place, stretching and nudging her shins.
"By the gods!" Sedgik yelped, leaping up onto the bed. "What is that?"
"This is my best friend, Mendi. You can call me Tira Darkheart." And now we have something to talk about.
