24
ROSARIUS
DOWNTOWN SARASINIA
It was already dark when the boys met at the Red Shell. The guards frowned at their town blades, but ushered them up the stairs and into their suite without comment.
“Don’t forget,” said Rosarius, eyeing Borrego. “Don’t forget what we agreed.”
Borrego blew out his cheeks. “Fuck! All right! I promise not to mention the money when Lucius gets here. How many times would you like me to say it?”
“Good. Thank you.” He looked around. The room was a little worn, but at least everything had been set up as he’d requested. Cushioned alcoves lined the walls. On a long table, heaping platters of bread, sliced meats and pitchers of beer awaited. There were more mugs than seemed necessary, and benches enough for a small army. Overkill, but he wasn’t about to complain. “Hey, this looks all right, boys, don’t you think?”
“It looks great,” said Andreas. “How come we don’t do this more often?”
“Probably because we’ve got no money left thanks to our so-called surgeon,” said Borrego. “I swear, for what we paid that fucking Phena, we could have bought an entire fucking–”
Rosarius glared. “What about your promise?”
Borrego returned the look and then some. “Sod off, Rosy. I said I wouldn’t mention anything until he gets here. For right now, I’ll say what I want.”
“So we’ll not be on the subject beyond the next few moments,” said Carranza, holding up a finger, “let’s make sure we’re absolutely clear about Lucius. He pays for nothing. Not for Phena, not for tonight, not for anything. Got it?”
Borrego sniffed. “I never suggested otherwise.”
“Yeah,” said Carranza, eyeing him dubiously. “Uh, all right.”
“Come now, boys! It’s decided. Enough!” said Farias, stuffing a slab of beef into his mouth as he gave the table a once-over. “So, before we get started, let me just say I think tonight is going to be...”
“Epic,” said Alanso.
“Incredible,” said Carranza.
“Debaucherous!” said Borrego, brightening.
“Tit-tastic,” said Andreas.
“Uh, I don’t think ‘tit-tastic’ is even a word, Andreas,” said Farias. “Besides, I haven’t seen so much as a girl yet, let alone a nipple.”
“Don’t worry, they’re coming.” Carranza filled six mugs, handed out five, and raised one. “So then, let’s drink to epically incredible tit-tastic debaucherousness!”
“To epically incredible tit-tastic debaucherousness!” said the boys except for Farias, who rolled his eyes. Nevertheless, six mugs clattered against each other, foamy beer sloshed onto the floor, and they all drank.
“When’s our man getting here, anyway?” asked Andreas.
Alanso shrugged. “Soon, I hope.”
A steward in a leather apron appeared at the door. “Good evening, my lords,” he said, bowing and rubbing his hands as he entered. “How’s the room? Is everything to your liking?”
Borrego belched loudly. “Yep, it’s fine. Just make sure you keep the booze coming! Also, where’s the fucking girls?”
The man smiled and gave a short bow. “Happy to be of service, sir. And the girls will be with you shortly. Enjoy.” He turned to leave.
“Oi, wait up! How many did we order, again?”
“Girls? Uh, I believe there was a request for seven, sir.”
Borrego made a face. “Seven? Nah, that can’t be right. We need like, what? Another three, at least.”
“Another three? It should be no problem, sir. Except...?”
“Except,” said Borrego, growling, “you want to be paid up-front.”
The man smiled thinly. “If it’s not too much to ask, of course.”
Borrego wasn’t at all happy about it, clearly, but he fished around in his purse until he found a grad. “Will this do?”
The man took the coin and slipped it into a pocket. “It will, sir.” Then he departed, closing the door carefully behind him.
“Gods above,” said Andreas. “I don’t think we need ten girls, do we?”
Borrego waved a hand. “No, we do. You can never have enough.” He pulled out a seat at the table and the others followed.
“Yeah, dunno what kind of cunt it’s going to be three to a goldie, though,” said Carranza.
“Are you kidding?” said Andreas. “It’ll be more than decent. Has anyone not been here before?”
“I have,” said Farias. “And I agree–the Red Shell isn’t exactly what you’d call downmarket.”
“Gotta say I’m with Carranza on this one,” said Alanso. “I’ll believe it’s good when I see it.”
“Pfft!” said Borrego, sneering. “A couple of snobs is what you guys are. Pussy snobs!” He laughed and took a hefty swig from his mug. “The extras are mine anyway, so hands off. Unless you want to chip in?”
“You can’t fuck three girls by yourself,” said Alanso.
Borrego smiled. “We’ll see about that, eh? Anyway, with all the pussy snobs here tonight, I might have to. Besides, you know how I don’t like anything going to waste.”
“Last time I was here it was awful,” said Carranza, wrinkling his nose. “They tried to give me a girl with three nipples, would you believe?”
“Three nipples?” asked Farias.
“Does that mean she had three tits, then?” asked Borrego. “Or what?”
“No, no,” said Carranza. “Not three tits. Just an extra nipple on top of one her regular ones.”
“So, what’d you do?”
“I asked for a different girl, of course.” Carranza stuck out his tongue. “It was fucking disgusting.”
Borrego looked at him over the top of his beer. “What? Who gets their panties in a bunch about an extra nipple? You’re a fucking idiot.”
“Suck my dick.”
“No thanks. Heard you’re into that kind of thing, though...”
Carranza was on his feet. “Hey, fuck you!”
Borrego drained his mug before pelting it clear across the room. “Wanna take me on, Carranza?” he said, puffing out his chest. “I’ll take you on, bitch.”
“Who the fuck are you calling a bitch? You useless lump of shit!”
“That’s it,” said Borrego, getting up. “You’re gone.”
Rosarius banged on the table with both fists. “Woah! Woah! Woah! Sit the fuck down, Borrego. No one is taking anyone on. Fucking knock it off, both of you. We did not come here to fight!”
Carranza and Borrego glared at each other. Finally, Carranza nodded. “Yeah. Fine. At least I certainly didn’t come here to fight.”
“Fair enough,” said Borrego, sitting again. “I didn’t, either.”
“Good,” said Andreas. “That’s better. It’s finished, eh? Now shake hands, the pair of you.”
Borrego seemed reluctant, but eventually he leaned over and extended his palm. Carranza glowered as he took it.
“There,” said Andreas. “That wasn’t so hard, was it? We’re all brothers, remember? And brothers don’t fight.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Borrego poured himself a fresh mug.
“Fine,” said Carranza. “I’m over it.”
Andreas poked a hole in the air with a finger. “Boys, we’re here to drink, fuck, and otherwise have a good time. Nothing else. You got it?”
“Yeah,” said Carranza. “Got it.”
“Whatever,” said Borrego.
Behind them, the door burst open. Startled, they all flinched and reached for their blades. But they needn’t have worried, and grimaces turned to grins as a pack of girls rushed the table in a flurry of colour, greeting everyone with hugs and loud demands for beer.
Alanso leaned in to whisper to Andreas and Rosarius. “Shit. Check out the tits on that one, will you?”
“Which one?” asked Andreas.
Alanso pointed. “Her. The one with the gold pants.”
“Oh yeah,” said Rosarius. “Very nice.”
“Eh, she’s all right I guess,” said Andreas.
“You gotta be kidding.” Alanso gave him a flat look. “She’s got tits for days. And she’s gorgeous.”
“Well I’ve seen bigger,” said Andreas, shaking his head. “And I dunno know about gorgeous. But she isn’t bad.”
“No, no. She’s the prettiest one here by far.”
“Eh, we’ll agree to disagree. What’s with those trousers, though?”
“What do you mean?”
“Might be trying to hide something.”
Alanso gave him a look. “Hide something? Like what?”
Andreas snorted. “Like a dick?”
“She does not have a dick,” said Rosarius, laughing.
“You don’t know that for sure,” said Andreas. “And there’s really only one way to find out.”
“We ordered girls,” said Alanso, horrified, “and girls don’t have dicks! The fuck is wrong with you?”
Alanso shrugged. “Like I said...”
The girl who had formerly worn gold pants (and definitely didn’t have a dick) was thumping out a lively beat on a drum, while another played the flute. The rest were dancing around the room in various stages of undress. The boys sat at the table ogling them, laughing, eating and slapping their mugs against the table in time to the music.
Attendants had finished replenishing the beer for the second time when Lucius finally arrived. “Looks like the party’s in full swing,” he said, sweeping into the room with his arms raised.
The boys got to their feet. “Lucius!” cried Borrego, hastening to meet him. “It’s good to see you, brother. Ha, you look good!” He clapped a hand on Lucius’s shoulder and steered him to the table where Carranza thrust a mug into his hands.
“He does, doesn’t he?” said Rosarius. There were murmurs of agreement, though in truth Lucius’s clothes were hanging off him. Phena’s skill might have snatched him from an early funeral, but she hadn’t been able to keep it from seeming otherwise.
“It’s really good to see you guys,” said Lucius. Though he had the appearance of a thing conjured from the Otherworld, his wound had closed and the surrounding skin looked pink and healthy. “You have no idea how good!”
“What took you so long?” asked Farias. “We’ve been waiting forever.”
Lucius sipped at his beer. “Am I that late?”
“Eh, who cares?” Farias waved away the thought. “So, what did my aunt have to say, then? Any parting words?”
“Same stuff she’s been saying for the past month, really. You know, how it was a near thing but I’ll live? All that.”
Andreas looked him up and down. “You’re still so skinny.”
“Mm, I know. It’ll be a bit longer before I’m fully recovered. Phena said the weight will come back soon enough.”
Borrego grabbed two pitchers of beer. “Sounds good. Drink up then, Lucius!” Turning to Rosarius he yelled, “Oi, Rosy! Where’s ya mug?”
“No thanks,” said Rosarius. “I’m not drinking tonight.”
“Bull fuckin’ shit you aren’t! Where’s ya fuckin’ mug, ya big girl?”
Rosarius frowned. “No, I’m serious. Romelo’s waiting for me to slip up. I don’t want to drop my guard…”
Borrego shook his head. “Romelo? Pah! Forget that prick.”
“He’s up to something, brother.”
“Oh, come on! He’s not going to try anything here.”
“Borrego–”
“No!” said Borrego, pushing the mouth of one his pitchers into Rosarius’s chest. “You can’t keep letting that little boyfucker cunt up your life. You won’t go here, you won’t go there. You can’t do this, you can’t do that. You’re always looking over your shoulder. Well, fuck that noise! Whatever you think that fuckin’ piece of dog shit’s got planned for you, it isn’t happening tonight. You’re safe here, brother!” He gestured at the door with his chin, spilling beer in the process. “And I swear to you–and this is an oath now, you hear?–I swear that if that arse rapist so much as pokes his nose through that fuckin’ door there, I’ll rip his motherfuckin’ nuts off and shove ‘em down his neck!”
“Mm.”
Borrego brandished his pitchers. “Besides, it’s only beer!”
“Fine, fine,” said Rosarius as Farias found him a mug and Borrego filled it to the top. “I guess one or two won’t hurt.”
“We’re all armed anyway,” said Farias, slapping the hilt of the town blade on his hip. “Not only that, there are guards in the hall and more downstairs. And we can always bar the door.”
“I wouldn’t even fuckin’ worry about the door,” said Borrego. “Not even your dumb fuckin’ cousin would do something as stupid as make trouble at the Red Shell. It’s not gonna happen.” He looked at the girls as they skipped and shimmied around the room. “I’d watch out for them, though. Wouldn’t put it past the son of a bitch to pay a slut to plant a dagger in your ribs or poison your drink. Ha, ha, ha!”
“Great,” said Rosarius, frowning at his beer. “Thanks. Right when I was beginning to feel safe.”
“You can’t keep living like this, Rosarius,” said Farias.
“Yeah. So you guys love to remind me.”
“It’s because we want the best for you,” said Borrego. “Look, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again–we should kill him ourselves. It wouldn’t be that hard to do. We could lure the fucker onto the roof of the dorm one night and shove him over the side. It’d look like an accident. Or we could get him during training. A blunt sword can still kill, eh? I mean shit happens, right?”
“A training accident?” Rosarius nodded. “Yeah, you know that could actually work.”
Borrego grinned. “We’ll talk about it later, eh? Between us I’m sure we could think of a way to kill that cunt and get away with it. But in the meantime, let’s fuckin’ put him out of our thoughts and enjoy ourselves, all right? Drink up, and maybe flirt with one or two of the least dangerous-looking girls, eh?”
Rosarius smiled as a trio of naked women drifted past. “I’ll do what I can.”
“Look at the tits on this lot!” said Borrego, putting down a pitcher and putting his arm around the closest girl. She laughed and let him bury his face in her chest. Her friends pounced on the big man, one trying to jam a nipple in his left ear, while the third bounced her heavy breasts on the back of his head. “It’s tits, tits and more tits!” he cried, and with a roar he upended his remaining pitcher and doused the four of them. The girls screamed and giggled and staggered away flicking golden liquid out of their hair and eyes.
Each of the boys had settled on a girl except for Borrego, who was careful to keep his three within easy reach. Two of the couples retired to the semi-privacy of the alcoves, while the rest ate and talked around the table. Rosarius sat with Gila, a sharp-featured local with mousy hair and full lips.
“Why do you keep looking at the door?” Gila put a hand on his face and turned it towards hers. “I’m naked. You should be looking at me.”
“I’m not looking at the door,” said Rosarius, lying.
Gila squinted at him. “You’re not... er, you know? Are you?”
“Huh? Not what?”
“You know...” She held up a hand and let it fall at the wrist.
“No. Fuck no.”
“Are you sure? We hear a lot of stories about you Bastion boys, you know, all living together up there on your hill in your cosy little dormitories.”
Rosarius laughed. “Well it goes on, I admit. But I’m definitely not that way inclined.”
“Just as well.” Though she was already close enough that he could smell beer on her breath, she leaned in further still and kissed him.
“I like your smile,” he said.
“Thanks. I like yours too. When you remember you’ve got one, that is.”
“Eh?”
“Seems to me like you’re preoccupied with something.”
“I suppose I am.” Rosarius let his eyes drift to the door. Try as he might, he couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that his cousin might burst in at any moment.
Gila took his hand and put it on her left breast. “So why not occupy yourself with something else?”
Rosarius rolled her nipple between his fingers, smiling as it stiffened. “All right. I guess I could at least give it a try.”
“Mm,” said Gila, biting her lip. “I like that. Hey now, don’t forget the other one.”
Rosarius kneaded her breasts with both hands before taking one in his mouth. Thoughts of Romelo left his head. “I haven’t been with a girl for ages,” he said, licking around her nipples. “I’d almost forgotten how soft you are.”
“Someone has to be.” Gila reached into his trousers and took hold of his hardening prick. “Gods know you boys aren’t.”
“Yep,” said Rosarius, laying a trail of kisses up the side of her neck. She shivered, and as he moved to repeat it on the other side, she intercepted him with another kiss. This time she opened her mouth to him, and he blinked in surprise. Her tongue felt oddly thick and wet in his mouth, but he went along with it. “What was that?” he asked when they broke away.
“Did you like it?”
Rosarius wiped off his chin. “It was a bit weird with your tongue all, you know, in there. But, yeah. I liked it.”
“It’s called a soul kiss,” said Gila, and she moved toward him again. “It’s all the rage in Romelia these days. And it really does things for me.” They stayed with their mouths locked together for a while, his hands on her breasts and hers around his shoulders. When she spoke again, her voice was raspy. “I’m ready. Are you ready?”
“Oh, yeah,” said Rosarius, his cock straining against his trousers as he fumbled with the buckle on his sword belt. “I’m ready.”
“Here, let me.” She undid his belt with a practiced flick and his trousers fell to his ankles.
Rosarius’s cock stood like a pole. Gila grasped it with one hand and squeezed out a droplet of fluid. She peered at it for a moment before rubbing it between thumb and forefinger. He looked at her. “Gotta warn you, I really haven’t done this for a whi–”
“Mhm,” said Gila, taking him in her mouth.
“Oh shit,” he said. Her mouth was hot and velvety, and she swirled her tongue around the head of his cock in a way that was impossible to resist.
“Give it,” said Gila, sensing his impending release. She redoubled her efforts.
“Uunh!” cried Rosarius, his dick twitching. “Oh fuck! That’s–” he said, exploding into her mouth. It was all happening far too soon!
She swallowed every drop. “Mm, that was quick.”
“Yeah,” he said, unable to hide his frustration. Why did she have to look so pleased with herself? He took a deep breath. “I didn’t want it to be over so quickly, but…”
Gila took a slice of meat from the table and stuffed it into his mouth. “Don’t worry,” she said, taking a second piece for herself. She chewed it between sips of beer. “There’s always round two.”
Rosarius’s spirits lifted even as his cock did the opposite. He sighed a happy sigh. “That one went right down to my feet.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I can still feel it in my ankles a little bit.”
“Mmm!” said Gila. “I love it when that happens. Sometimes when I cum I get these little orgasms in my hands as well.”
The table lurched suddenly, making them recoil. They turned around to see a girl perched on the far end, with Andreas ploughing her roughly from behind. Gila let out a whoop of encouragement that made them all laugh.
Rosarius reached for her hand. “Come on,” he said. “It’s a bit uncomfortable on this bench.”
“All right,” said Gila, allowing herself to be led away.
“That’s better,” said Rosarius as they settled against a pile of cushions in one of the corner alcoves. She smiled but didn’t say anything, putting her arms around him and kissing him instead. His hands explored her breasts, her back, her pale little arse. She went for his cock and slowly massaged him back to stiffness.
“Hey now.” Gila giggled as Rosarius pushed her onto her back. He got up on his knees between her legs, but instead of mounting her, he bent down and licked carefully up the length of her thigh. The look of surprise on her face delighted him as he nuzzled the edge of her crotch. “Wait!” she cried, trying to wriggle away. “What are you–?”
Rosarius licked around her clit in circles. She stopped moving and closed her eyes. He kept going for as long as he could, but when his tongue started to hurt, he lay alongside her and massaged her with his fingers. He stopped when she hoarsely whispered that she couldn’t take any more. At that point, he spread her legs and eased his cock into her. He fucked her hard, spurred on by the sight of her cunt taking him in up to the balls.
“I’m nearly there,” he gasped, and she kissed him as he came.
They lay together afterward, practically melting into their cushions. “Where did you learn how to do that?” asked Gila.
“You mean the thing with my hands?”
“Uh huh. And your tongue.”
“A girl I used to know taught me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. She couldn’t get off otherwise.”
“Well I have to say it was pretty fucking good.”
“Yeah?”
“Oh yeah.” Gila nodded. “And believe me, nobody has ever done anything like that for me before.”
“Ah, because of how you’re a–? Because you–?” He knew what he wanted to say, but couldn’t say it.
Gila took his meaning anyway. “Mhm. Yep.”
“Yeah, well now they have.”
“You don’t regret it?”
“What? No. Why would I?”
She closed her eyes. “It really was wonderful. Thank you.”
“Can you feel little orgasms in your hands?”
“Actually, I can. Now please shut up so I can enjoy them?”
They spent the rest of the night talking and laughing. She traced her fingers over the myriad scars on his body, even insisted on squeezing the blackheads on his back. She wasn’t gentle and seemed to relish the task, proudly displaying the fruits of her labour on fingertips for him to see. He found it oddly erotic. Later, when the other boys traded partners, he declined. Gila seemed pleased by that, and they fucked again before sunrise.
Rosarius floated through the next few days. He carried the scent of her on his skin, and it was almost as if he could still feel her touch. He went back to the Red Shell at the end of the week and asked for Gila, but she wasn’t there. He was told that she’d left the city and would return later. A fortnight went by and she still hadn’t come back. He spent those weeks trying to convince himself she was just a whore who meant nothing to him.