Calliope's Wings Read online

  I rocked back into the bedding, more of an uncoordinated flop than an orchestrated fall, as the beasts picked up speed. Other than the acceleration, though, their gaits were so smooth and seamless that I couldn’t tell the gentle rocking of before from what it was now.

  Slowly, the sounds of voices filtered in over the thundering beats of the Mahzri’s feet against hard-packed earth. Some of them were bellowing incomprehensible words. Others were laughing. Most was just, from what I could tell, loud chatter. The basket was low enough between the two’s backs and the gauze just thick enough that I really didn’t have any concept of the world outside of my little cocoon. I didn’t like it. Not one bit.

  A startled yip shot from between my lips when, after some time, we came to an all-out stop. If I hadn’t been reclined in the bedding, I probably would’ve gone toppling right over and out the front of the basket, opening or no opening. My ejection would’ve made an exit.

  The two Mahzri came down, taking the cocoon with them.

  The thing teetered on the ground and I felt like I was standing – even though I was sitting – in a rowboat out on open water.

  The canopy split right down the center, some of the arching lattice beneath the curtain clicking as they parted from each other. I shielded my eyes from the bright sun with my hands, moaning a little from the pain in my retinas from it. I didn’t realize how intense the light was due to the shelter I’d been put in for whatever traveling we were doing.

  What I wouldn’t give for my pink-rimmed Oakley’s. So expensive, but it was so worth it. The bitches were fire!

  Blinking dazedly, I jolted when I realized where I was and who – or rather what – I was with.

  The Mahzri, apparently, had pulled away from the Lubrei. I couldn’t see a single Tauren soul around the pocket of caddin fronds and blue-black, dry grass in the desert. The two who’d carried my basket were looking over their shoulders at me, their mouth-tendrils waving gladly. They weren’t the one’s who’d lowered the canopy, however.

  Oh no. That honor belonged to Big Mama behind me.

  I tried not to flinch. I really did. But the female Mahzri was beyond imposing. She was a foot taller than the bronze males and her charcoal-colored hide was blotched with onyx speckles. Her plating was sharper, too, her topaz ‘eyes’ a sharp contrast to her otherwise dark body. She was looking down at me with that intense gaze, her clawed digits clicking against each other.

  “Uh-ha…h-hey.” Stupid. You’re a fucking moron, Io. “Wouldn’t, uh, s’pose you’d know where a girl could go to the bathroom, would you?”

  No verbal response, but I wasn’t really expecting one. I think if she had talked back, there wouldn’t have been a need for me to find a bathroom.

  Instead, she warbled a cheery sound. Not that I was fluent in velociraptor-Mahzri. …I needed my to-English dictionary for such things.

  She bent herself forward deeply and rubbed her closed mouthplates against my cheek. It was nice and I found her mulled-cider breath pleasant. I was a second away from nuzzling her back – crazy, right? – when she swept me out of the basket.

  Another gasped yelp escaped when I looked the long way down to the cocoon I’d been in. It was a basket. There were leather straps secured to a saddle of some sort on the backs of the two male Mahzri. They were evenly spaced apart from the basket, not the least at risk of bumping the smooth sides. I imagined it had to have been heavy with the amount of blankets tucked into it, not to mention my own body, but they wouldn’t have strained under that weight. From all I’d seen on Luintak so far, the Mahzri were a great deal stronger than even draft horses or camels. Maybe even elephants.

  They’d have to be to carry the weight of the Zikta or pull the Udon’s wagons.

  Big Mama put me back down on the ground nearer to the caddin fronds and away from the others. It wasn’t just the three, either. There was a whole herd of beasts clustered up behind her, blocking the way out into the desert-slash-plains. Some were grazing in the dry grass. Others were playing with each other. Most of them, though, had their heads facing directly towards me.

  Awkward.

  The female stroked a claw through my hair, setting off more of those bells, before hiking my skirts right up. The bodice might’ve been tight, but the rest of it hung in panels all the way down into the dirt.

  “What’re you doing?! Hey! Bad beastie!”

  I stumbled to get away from her pulling, but shafts of acute pain bolted through my chest. I crossed my arms and withered from the ache of it. Even with the bandages keeping my ribs bound up, they were going to hurt for as long as they took to heal. I’d never suffered with them back on my Earth and, usually, I tended to be killed whenever they were broken by whatever Master I landed in the hands of. I didn’t know how long it’d take before they got better.

  It would’ve helped if I knew exactly how bad they were. Mari’et could’ve helped me.

  I wondered if she survived the attack on Blackburhn.

  The Mahzri warbled and screeched in distress. Big Mama was the closest and came at me, a clear intention to pick me up radiating from her. I backstepped, not wanting to be airborn again. I had a feeling I’d be going right back into that cocoon if I gave in.

  “I’m fine,” I mumbled, tripping towards the fronds. My skirts were still in the Mahzri’s claws, so I couldn’t go far. My bladder pinched again, warning me to go or face the consequences. Feeling a flush rising to my cheeks, I grasped the back of one of her claws. I switched out of English and into something I knew she’d understand at least a little bit. “Just stay. Stay.”

  Big Mama laid down on her stomach so she wasn’t so severely hunched over me and, embarrassed though I was, I supported myself with her bulk as I peed. No one saw fit to wind an undercloth around my pelvis – my kingdom for panties – so it was a quick venture. There weren’t any leaves I could use to clean myself up, so drip-drying was my only avenue after I was done.

  An egg could cook on my face with how hot it was as I kept crouched until I felt as comfortable as I was going to get.

  None too soon, either, because there was an uproar from beyond the Mahzri.

  “Not him,” I muttered as Hulk shouldered his way between two bronze males. His expression was shuttered with anger, his jaw tight with his tusks glinting in the sun. He was as shirtless as before, bedecked in only his leather trou and boots. Other warriors followed in his wake, using the long shafts of spears and their bare hands to urge the gathered Mahzri away. The Mahzri balked…loudly.

  “Return to Your omma, Innintani.” For being the first time speaking to me in a way I could understand, other than telling me to be calm or shushing my fretting, his tone wasn’t any different. It was still like the ancient god of a volcano rumbling orders down at me. It brought goosebumps to my skin.

  Don’t ask me where I got the courage to do it, but I stood as straight as I could and glared at him.

  “No.”

  Give the man credit, he didn’t falter. His steps never ceased. He just strode up into my space and stared down at me. Big Mama made a growling sound at him, forever earning my favor, and clacked her dorsal plates at him. He offered her only a token glance before stooping down low, all but kneeling at my feet.

  He took the skirts out of her claws, shredding some of the fabric in the process. His big hands skimmed my calves and thighs, tickling along the jewelry that was on me and setting the bells to chiming even though I wasn’t moving.

  Yeah, I was pretty sick of them already.

  “You will rest,” he growled moments before picking me up. One arm slid up and behind my back even as he tipped me, the motion keeping me from feeling the pain of my ribs like I would have if he’d just dumped my body into his embrace. His arms were like tree trunks under me; no give whatsoever. There wasn’t an ounce of softness to his body.

  Whatever idiot women said they felt all comfy-cozy in the arms of muscled men were obviously short a few brain cells. Other than being warm, this guy had nothing going
for him.

  “Why am I here? Who are you? Why have you been helping me?” I rushed the questions out even as he ferried me back to the basket.

  He didn’t speak right away. Instead, he focused on getting me tucked under the blankets. One of his hands kept up pressure on my shoulder so I couldn’t crawl out and away like I wanted to. For as cool and comfy as the bedding was, I didn’t want to be bundled up in it. I wanted to know why they were fixated on me, calling me Innintani, and what they wanted with me. If I knew anything about Intau and its relation to me, it was that no good ever happened for me. I was doomed to a life of suffering.

  Who’s cheerios did I shit on in a past life?

  “You will rest here. Food will be brought to You.”

  He’s ignoring me. Is Hulk deaf on top of being a goddamn gorilla? I hoped he was deaf because I never did well with being ignored. My plethora of tattoos were proof enough of that. What girl had tatted, three-quarter sleeves, a long back piece, and a few more on top of that and didn’t want to draw attention? Cuz I’d love to meet that bitch and ask her some pointed questions.

  “Stop it!” I pushed at his hands when he started to tuck me in like he did the night before…if it even was the night before. Whatever he gave me could’ve had me knocked out for a week for all I knew.

  He kept ignoring me.

  “At least tell me your name. Please?”

  “You do not ask, Innintani. You say.” He took my wrists despite my fussing and pressed them under the uppermost blanket. It should’ve been too hot for the weight of them, but they were cool to the touch. It was…weird.

  Fine. He wanted me to be an asshole? He asked for it. “Tell me your name.”

  “Kor.”

  “I am Calliope. Io. Why am I here, Kor?”

  “Rest.” With that parting growl, Kor moved back to towering over me and the basket. He snapped the canopy shut again, but not before his gaze burned holes into me. His intense scrutiny made me shiver.

  Almost immediately, the basket was lifted and the sound of thundering footfalls enshrouded the whole cocoon. The easy rocking came back and I huffed in pent-up frustration.

  I always wondered why that kid was so upset in Jurassic Park when he climbed down the tree only to have the car fall over him. I mean, he was still alive. He was on the ground. He wasn’t mortally hurt. Why bitch? Now, though? Now I knew. It wasn’t about being healthy and ‘safe’…it’s all about a matter of perspective. And my perception told me I didn’t wanna be bundled up like a baby or fragile bit of glass for travel.

  “Back in the basket again,” I groused, rolling my head into the pillow.

  Despite my dour turn in mood, I admitted to being tired still. My body was recovering, I knew, and that was taxing. My throbbing ribs told me to shut my ass up and lie down like a good girl. When I was feeling better, I could try and wriggle my way out of whatever it was I found myself tied up in. I didn’t know what these Lubrei wanted with me, but I knew better than to think anything good would come of it.

  The good news, though, was that Mathai was dead. My Master was gone, never to hurt me again. With any luck, I could get lost in the Udonak. Their groups were usually sizable and it should be easy to hide in the masses until I could slip away. I could do that at the next city they stopped at to collect tribute.

  So maybe, just maybe, this was my chance for freedom?

  Smiling to myself, I hunkered down for a nap in my nice, cool sheets. A little siesta wouldn’t hurt anything.

  Chapter Six

  Innintani.

  Innintani.

  Ahteht, Innintani.

  I moaned and halfway rolled in my bed, feeling miserable. My back was back to screaming and my head hurt. As in, I had an awful headache. My stomach gurgled and cramped, chiding me in the worst possible way that I hadn’t eaten in some time.

  It should’ve been used to that by now.

  “Summon the Tohtahk.” Tan’s voice was near my face. A damp, cool cloth was being wiped across my brow. “Hurry.”

  Ugh. Not that guy. It didn’t take a genius to figure out who they were talking about. Kor – a.ka. Hulk Smash – was most likely their Tohtahk. I didn’t want him anywhere near me. That miserable, stone-faced asshole.

  “I am well,” I told Tan in a sleep-rasped voice. I reached up and out to knock her hand and the cloth away from my face. She brought it right back, tinkling the bells in her way. There was a fat stone between my brows that tapped incessantly against my skin. “Stop. I am well. Just…hey! It’s nighttime!”

  The last of my statement was more or less a shout and I’d slipped back into English. I struggled in the bedding, trying to sit up. I felt as weak as a kitten, my back burned, and my ribs felt like they were cracking like wooden spoons on knees to a tune I couldn’t hear. I gagged from the pain, a bit of spittle and stomach acid trailing across my lips when I wasn’t able to contain it. Humiliation zinged through me when the female mopped it up.

  “Forgive me,” Ruune’s deeper voice fell over me from behind, seconds before I was plucked from the basket.

  The slave I wasn’t sure was a man or woman, despite her single braid and skirts, moved with seemingly practiced ease as she draped me half over her chest. My arms went over her shoulders while one of her hands urged me to lay my cheek to one side of her head. My legs were straddled over her lap, my chest to hers, with my back facing the others.

  I didn’t go into Ruune’s shoulder willingly. Instead, I blinked at her face rudely.

  Unlike the other slaves, Ruune had a bullring a lot like Kor’s or the unnamed Zikta from before. That seemed important. She also had pierced nipples, which none of the other slaves had. Feeling her body under mine, too, I could feel muscle that was more pronounced than the lithe musculature of normal Tauren women. Her jaw was a bit blocky and she had a heavier brow-bone. Her body lacked some of the curvature most females had, too. Not to mention her more pronounced tusks, which should’ve been tiny nubs over her bottom lip instead of boldly present.

  My preoccupation made it easy for Tan to sheer away the bandages binding my torso. The dress I’d had on was already gone and I absently wondered how out of it I had to have been for these people to be able to dress and undress me without my knowledge.

  Ruune was muttering under her breath, a consistent plea for forgiveness. I felt horrible for her. She thought I was going to have her beaten. For what? Touching me without permission? Ha! If only she knew a fraction of the injustices I’d faced since waking on Intau. Locking me up on her lap wasn’t anything.

  So, as a cork popped and the scent of that minty musk assaulted my nose, I summoned a smile for the slave holding me.

  “You are forgiven, Ruune.” I patted her wide shoulders and grinned kindly. Her face registered shock at my gentle touch. “You have been very kind to me. There is no reason to think I would punish you for that. Not that I could.”

  “Innintani,” she began in her too-masculine voice, “You can do whatever You wish. I am at Your mercies, of which You have bestowed on me once already.”

  I hissed in pain from jolting my ribs as I jerked away from the numbing salve being slathered onto my back. The numbing was perfect, but the initial shock of cold against my skin wasn’t pleasant. It was worse when the females all began genuflecting immediately, their voices frantic.

  Fuck. This panicking needs to stop.

  Before I could speak, a now-familiar, bestial growl silenced the slaves. I sagged into Ruune in defeat.

  He didn’t need to bark an order for the slaves to scrabble out of his way. They made room for him behind me and, when I looked over my shoulder, I could see the tense set of his jaw and the hardness of his stare. For all the tender ministrations he offered to me – all without my say-so, mind you – he was a mean bastard. I didn’t know why he bothered.

  He took over where Tan stopped. Ruune shook underneath me, obvious terror wracking her body.

  Kor started talking in that two-voiced way of his, his words incomprehensi
ble again. He was as diligent as he was back in the hut, lavishing my back with the salve. Ruune’s chin bumped my shoulder and responded in the same way. Two-toned and deep.

  Yeah…Ruune’s male. Don’t know why I’m so sure of it, but I am.

  Of course, maybe I was being too restricted with my thoughts. I knew the orc-people were basically the same as human people. Humanoid, if a bit monstrous. Male or female genitalia on a male or female body. But maybe, just maybe, they had transgender, too? Or even hermaphrodites?

  One of my clients at the shop was a biologist. A human biologist. They gushed and gushed about the human genome. I’m not afraid to say that I pretty much blocked that dude out. I’d have put my pods in if I wasn’t afraid of it offending him. His tat was a DNA strand underneath hyper-realistically torn skin and over carefully delineated muscle. It was one of my best pieces and he’d paid me bank for that shit.

  I’d picked up a bit from him about a sample he got – i.e. corpse – that was close to being a true hermaphrodite. The ‘sample’ had a deformed little scrotum and a fully-functional penis, paired up with a womb tucked just behind the sac. He’d been elated in a sick kinda way to be able to have his hands on a corpse so ‘intact’. Apparently, true hermaphroditic structure in people was rare.

  Was it the same with orcs? Did Ruune have a dick to go along with her tits?

  How perverted was it that I wanted to flip up her skirts and look?

  I jumped when Ruune was grabbed out from under me. I screeched, loudly, when her body went tumbling to the ground from the clawed hand that shoved her down. I wavered where I was still perched on her lap, my arms flailing.

  Chime. Tinkle. Ring.

  Fuck these fucking bells!

  I blinked dazedly at Big Mama, who was bent over the slave she just flattened to the ground. She pushed her mouthplates into me, opened them, and caressed my cheeks with her tendrils. Then, with a jaunty chirrup, she scooped me up.