Date: Sun, 04 Dec 2016 18:43:28 +0000
From: George Gauthier <georgegauthierdc@gmail.com>
Subject: Elf-Boy's Friends 43

				Elf-Boy's Friends 43
				Predators
 				by George Gauthier

[The further adventures of characters from the novel 'Elf-Boy and Friends']

			Chapter 1. The Sea of Grass

"It is just as we were told, Axel. There is neither road nor trail across
the great sea of grass which lies before us. And no one back at that last
settlement knew what might lie on the other side."

Indeed the rolling tall grass prairie reached to the horizon, crossed by
lines of cottonwoods along the streams which drained the low hills to the
south. It was a monotonous landscape without landmarks or signs of
civilization.

The road the boys had followed had petered out at the salt lick days
earlier. From then on, they had just picked a promising direction and
headed out. They might not know where they we going but they could not get
lost, not with Axel and Derry both gifted with Unerring Direction. Besides
Axel was a jumper. If need be he could teleport himself high into the sky
not only to look ahead but also to take bearings on far off landmarks, then
triangulate his position on a map. In that way their little expedition was
charting these regions as they went.

"Then we will be the first to find out, and you Corwin will be the first to
report it to the world."

"Only as long as we come upon something memorable. The Capital
Intelligencer is not interested in publishing a boring travelogue. My
articles always deliver local color, intriguing personalities, excitement,
and adventure."

"Isn't that just what we encounter practically everywhere we go: action and
adventure? You have to admit we and our friends have seen more than our
fair share of it."

<You two maybe, but I have not," the unicorn Derry sent telepathically,
<being the newest member of your circle of friends. So I am look forward to
more of the same. After all, what is the point of going on a walkabout if
not to encounter what is new, interesting, and exciting?>

"Good point, Derry." Axel agreed. "And may I point out that we three have
already captured a gang of highwaymen and unmasked a serial killer. So I
think it's about time we took on a monster of some sort. Corwin wasn't with
the Corps of Discovery when we faced either the dragon or the mosasaur so
he himself is overdue for a close encounter with a genuine monster. Let's
see, the first was terrestrial, and the second was a predatory sea
creature. That leaves the sky. So let's all keep an eye out for flying
monsters. Remember it can be hard to tell the size of something up there in
the sky, without nearby objects for comparison."

"Yeah, right. I'll watch the sky all right, but only to keep a weather eye
peeled for a thunderstorm. Or maybe for real predators lurking in this tall
grass, say a pride of lions or a pack of hyenas."

Corwin shook his head and continued:

"Forget monsters in the sky. There aren't any flying creatures big enough
to be called monsters despite those lurid tales of rocs and wyverns
carrying off elephants in their claws. Anyway fliers silhouetted against
the sky make easy targets for our airguns. Our carbines don't have the
range of the infantry version, but we can just let the creatures fly a bit
closer before shooting them down."

<And my sonic weapon will sweep the rest from the skies, bringing them down
to earth where I can engage them with my strength, my hooves, and my horn.>
Derry added confidently, tossing his head to emphasize the deadly horn
growing out of his forehead.

"Corwin is a pretty heavy hitter too with his ball lightning. And Derry we
are both counting on your great strength and natural armaments even more
than your sonic weapon.

Of the trio of adventurers Derry supplied the muscle. He stood a shade over
six and one half feet and weighed three hundred pounds. His magical nature
gave him almost four times his natural strength which meant that he was
actually stronger than a draft horse or any Frost Giant, save only Finn
Ragnarson who was himself a magically enhanced person.

By contrast Axel and Corwin were short and slightly built and as pretty as
high class rent boys. Indeed it was Axel's extremely boyish looks and sex
appeal which had lead to his kidnapping years earlier by a cabal of rapists
and sadists who had tried to turn him into a sex slave. Corwin himself had
once toyed with the idea of going undercover as a rent boy, but he had yet
to come up with a good hook for a story or a series. Rent boys were hardly
news. They were generally well paid and seldom abused.

Both boys massed less than ten pounds over a hundredweight and at 64 inches
were coincidentally the same height at the withers as Axel's sorrel gelding
which he had named Blaze after the white streak on its forehead.

Axel rode bared to the hips displaying at least half of the trim taut body
he was so proud of, though the rest of his outfit was conventional enough:
silk riding trews plus high heeled boots which fit more securely in the
stirrups than would flat soled sandals or moccasins. Axel needed all the
help he could get since, as a city boy, he was not not a particularly good
rider.

By contrast Corwin Klarendes, the cute blond boy at his side, had grown up
on the Eastern Plains. Riding was as natural to him as was walking. Which
was one reason he had no problem staying atop his mount despite riding
bareback -- without any help at all from saddle, stirrups, bridle, halter,
or hackamore.

But then such accouterments (or clothing either for Corwin was entirely
nude) were not needed when his mount could communicate directly with his
rider via Mind Speech, as telepathy was usually called on the planet of
Haven. Corwin had only to speak his wishes aloud and the unicorn would pick
up his thoughts. Derry did allow himself to be guided by pressure from
Corwin's knees or shifts of his body weight, taking those as helpful
suggestions rather than commands.

Derry was doubly magical: both a unicorn and a shapeshifter and was endowed
with the powers of both. In his two legged form he was a Snow-elf or rather
a hybrid of elf and giant, standing a finger over six and one half feet and
weighing three hundred pounds. Shapeshifting elves were called snow elves
for their glabrous alabaster skin, shoulder length ash-blond hair, and icy
grey eyes, though in Derry's case his build was much more robust than the
willowy physiques typical of full-blooded Snow Elves.

The shapeshifter and blond boy were more than mount and rider; they had
recently become lovers, leaving Axel temporarily high and dry with the
departure of the minstrel Loren from their company. So, off the road it was
Derry who mounted the very much smaller youth. It was at Derry's insistence
that Corwin rode not only bareback but also bare-ass naked, bare bum
pressed to bare back.

The three friends had been traveling at an easy pace that morning when the
the red-head turned to the blond boy and enthused:

"This more like it! I am so glad that I now ride a mount which ambles along
like your unicorn rather than trots as most horses do."

The trot was the working gait for a horse, the gait by which horses
traveled any real distance. Horses could canter or gallop only for only a
short time before they had to rest, whereas a horse could maintain a trot
for hours.

But the trot could be uncomfortable and tiring for the rider. Either the
saddle slapped his butt with every beat, or he had to post up and down. In
the trot the diagonal pairs of legs moved forward at the same time. That
left a moment during each beat when all four feet are off the ground hence
the characteristic jarring motion of the trot. Now a skilled equestrian
could ride without bouncing, but that took well-conditioned leg, back, and
abdominal muscles which Axel lacked, despite his athleticism. Which was why
he finally traded his mare in for a gelding trained to amble.

The amble was a four-beat gait at least as fast as the trot or the pace but
far smoother to ride, and the mount could keep it up for a very long time
too. For a unicorn it was the natural gait for long-distance
travel. Unicorns never trotted. With Derry moving at an amble and with
Corwin's legs locked around the barrel of his magical mount the blond boy
had as secure seat a seat as Axel had in his saddle atop Blaze.

By mid afternoon the two riders were proceeding on foot to give their
mounts a breather, though only Blaze really needed one. He was carrying
most of their kit as well as Axel. That included Axel's and Corwin's and
Derry's saddlebags all three. In his unicorn form Derry carried only his
own kit plus Corwin's carbine in a scabbard attached to his own pack, which
he never referred to as saddlebags even though they really were. Unicorns
have nothing to do with saddles, ever.

Now Derry was no beast master but he had enough psychic influence on Blaze
to make him break the trail for the runners coming behind him. Axel had
taken off his riding togs and ran in the nude like the other two boys. It
felt so good to stretch his legs and get his blood circulating. The
metronomic scissoring of his legs, the pumping of his arms, and the
bellowing of his lungs soon generated the euphoric feeling known as a
runner's high.

The boys ran at an easy pace, slow enough for conversation if they were in
the mood though mostly they kept to themselves, enjoying the warm sun on
their backs and bums and fresh air, full bellies, and the companionship of
friends. Life was good.

As they approached a low area flooded by a blockage downstream, Axel jumped
all of them including Blaze past the new-formed swamp to firm ground on the
other side. Then they followed the flow downstream to where the current had
undercut a bank of earth to create a temporary dam which was already
overtopped and had starting to disintegrate. It would not be long before
the stream returned to its banks. Picking up their chosen azimuth they head
out once again.

			Chapter 2. Painted Dogs

<Trouble up ahead.> Derry sent telepathically.

"What kind?" Corwin asked.

"Hard to say. I distinctly heard a horn sound the alarm, but the other
noises are indistinct and confused. Let's press on to the top of that low
ridge and take a peek.>

"All right, but we should not silhouette ourselves against the skyline. No
sense announcing our presence till we know what is going on. Let's just
peer over the ridge line. Derry, you fight better as a unicorn. Transform
and stay with Blaze and keep him out of sight. Axel, let's put on some
clothes and grab our air guns and blades plus our field packs and water
gourds. Don't forget your far-viewer tube."

At the top of the ridge the two boys went on their bellies and peered
through the grass. A pack of at least forty wild dogs was tearing apart the
carcasses a couple of frost giants and the four horses which had drawn a
pair of wagons until taken down by these painted dogs, so-named for their
coloring.

Packs of painted dogs normally preyed upon antelopes which they chased to
exhaustion or, in the case of larger prey, by repeatedly biting it on the
legs, belly and tail, bleeding it until it stopped running. Smaller prey
was simply pulled down and torn apart.

Smaller than wolves but larger than coyotes painted dogs stood about two
and a half feet and weighed forty to fifty pounds. Unlike coyotes which
might work in pairs or in small bands painted dogs hunted in large
packs. It was their numbers that made them such formidable predators. They
avoided forests preferring savannas which did not obstruct vision or impede
pursuit. Painted dogs had few natural enemies, though lions would attack
them to reduce the competition for prey.

"The main pack is still feeding, so why are a dozen dogs stationed around
that clump of trees? It's not for the shade. Most of them are in full
sunlight."

<The people who were in the wagons must have taken to the trees.> Derry
offered.

Sure enough. Now that he was looking for it he could see half a dozen
humans or maybe elves up in the trees.

"They must be hoping that the dogs will go away once they consume the flesh
on the horses.

<Only the dogs won't leave. Not all of them. Oh some will trot off to a
water hole for a drink but then return to relieve their sentries so that
they too might drink. No, these dogs are going to wait out the folks they
have treed. Sooner or later thirst will force them out of the trees. The
poor devils won't have a chance, whether fighting or running.>

<We must help them. You two are combat veterans so I will follow your
lead.>

"All right." Axel began. "Here is what I think we should do.

"Blaze should be safe enough where he is. I'll jump the three of us to a
position about four hundred yards from the pack, within easy range for our
air guns. Once we start picking them off they will charge us no matter how
full their bellies. Corwin, use your ball lightning against them. We will
let them get no closer than a hundred yards before jumping well away to
give us a chance to reload or recharge our air reservoirs. Then I will
teleport us once again to a firing position four hundred yards from the
pack. We'll whittle them down in no time."

"That sounds like a good plan. Let's do it just the way you laid it out
Axel."

"One thing more." Axel added:

"Derry, your task is to provide close in defense with both your killer
neigh and your natural weapons. In the confusion of a running battle some
of them might actually get in close.

<Close enough for me to kill them, you mean. Guys, keep in mind that we
have to exterminate this pack entirely. Predators who have once feasted on
human flesh may develop a taste for it, something they must not be allowed
to pass on to their offspring by regurgitating the contents of their
stomachs to feed their young as painted dogs do.>

The fight went as Axel had planned. Even the dozen dogs guarding the folks
in the trees joined in their mass attack, yipping from excitement at what
they took to be easy prey. The two marksmen aimed at those on the left
while Corwin also sent his balls of lightning at those on the
right. Without the need for close in defense, he formed four balls into a
phalanx and swept them through the oncoming pack, not trying to target any
specifically, not with his attention divided between his marksmanship and
his magical attack. At one point he bombarded a knot of dogs who had
bunched up, making them a target of opportunity for an explosive lightning
ball.

After expending all the shots in his magazine Axel announced that he was
dry. It was time to jump into the clear. He touched Corwin's shoulder while
Corwin touched Derry to link him up. Axel teleported them a thousand yards
out. The painted dogs did not know what to make of this development and
milled around in confusion, giving the boys the time to reload their air
guns from their ammo pouches and pump their air reservoirs back to full
pressure. Once they were ready Axel jumped them back to a firing position.

The excited yips and growls of the dogs had quickly changed to whines of
fear as the fire from the interlopers had devastated their numbers. Lead
bullets brought down half the pack while ball lightning accounted for the
rest -- all but the final three.

Those three managed to circle around, hidden by the high grass, to set up
an attack from the rear. The tall grass may have masked them from view, but
its unnatural movement alerted Derry who whirled to face the threat. His
hoofs smashed the skull of the lead dog. The second one went for his
throat, but the unicorn just lowered his head and impaled the beast on his
horn then tossed the body away. The third dog tried to hamstring the
unicorn's left rear leg but got kicked in the chest for his trouble and
then trampled into the earth. Derry's own injuries were not
serious. Besides, his transformation back to his bipedal form healed him
completely.

By the time the trio of rescuers reached them the trapped folks had climbed
down from the trees. The five survivors looked to be seriously dehydrated
from two days with little water so the boys shared what water they had in
their personal gourds while Derry summoned Blaze telepathically and passed
around the water skin the gelding carried. It was still not enough so Axel
asked if anyone knew of a water hole around there.

In a barely understandable croak an elf told them about a spring to the
southeast two miles along their back trail. Axel teleported upwards high
enough to spot it then jumped directly to the pool and refilled not only
their personal gourds and water skin but also the two water skins the
travelers had taken with them into the trees, hoping to wait the dogs out.

The survivors nodded their thanks for the water, their throats too parched
to say more. The five survivors were all healthy young males so before long
they were ready to take food though only a bit of jerky and way bread from
their wagons. After a couple of hours, they were recovered enough to tell
their story.

These five -- two elves, two humans, and a dwarf -- plus the dead giants
were a team of scouts sent out by a faith-based communal society made up of
all four main races seeking virgin lands to settle on and mineral wealth
they might exploit, which is why one of their party, the dwarf, was a
delver. The frost giants among them would take formal title to the acreage,
but all would share the fruits of the earth, as long as they worked
diligently whether in the fields or at other jobs. Their society had no
place for slackers.

Corwin and Axel were in agreement with that sentiment. A communal society
that tolerated freeloaders wouldn't last long. Not that the boys favored
communal ownership of property as an organizing principle for society. They
much preferred the Commonwealth's way of private property rights, free
markets and competition, limited liability companies, commercial courts to
enforce contracts, workers brotherhoods, patents to foster innovation, etc.

Suddenly Derry who had remained in his unicorn form morphed into his Snow
Elf form.

"Whoa!" the five cried in surprise. "What is this?"

Axel explained about Derry's dual nature as shape shifter who was both a
Snow Elf and a unicorn and endowed with the powers of both.

"That is some trick." the dwarf Gregor allowed. "My own gift of delving is
modest enough as are the gifts of my companions: the elves have Green
Thumbs, and the human youths have Unerring Direction which is why they are
our navigators as well as teamsters."

As the survivors talked, the boys warmed up to them. They were young and
personable fellows and seemed like regular folks, practical and down to
earth rather than utopian dreamers. It didn't hurt that except for the
dwarf Gregor they were all easy on the eyes. The two raven-haired elves
named Elrond and Eomer went sky-clad putting their entire bodies on
display. The humans were cousins named Ryan and Josh, pretty blond
teenagers who wore only skimpy buckskin breechclouts and matching
moccasins. The lads were nicely bronzed from much exposure in both senses
of the word.

They had thought themselves safe crossing the wilderness as a company of
seven. The smaller five rode in two wagons, the elves Elrond and Eomer
armed with long bows and the dwarf Gregor and the humans Ryan and Josh
wielding crossbows. The two frost giants followed on foot armed with big
air guns supported by a trio of Molossian hounds.

Alas in the high grass the vigilance of the hounds came to naught. The
painted dogs had caught the little convoy by surprise. It was unfortunate
that the five riders in the wagons were mostly unpracticed with their
weapons and not primed to bring them instantly into play. It took a moment
to string a long bow, throw the strap of the quiver over the shoulder and
select an arrow. Besides, it was hard to hit a moving target from a wagon
rocking across the landscape, so pitifully few of the arrows and crossbow
quarrels they had shot at the painted dogs had hit their targets.

The giants Hrolf and Jarl and their hounds nevertheless gave a good account
of themselves. Their heroic stand had held the dogs off long enough for
their friends to climb into the trees. By then they had shot off almost all
their missiles so their weapons were not much use. Their only hope was that
travelers would hear the horn which they sounded every hour, which is just
what happened.

Corwin pointed out that persons without strong magical gifts should travel
in large parties and be better armed to survive the dangerous predators
which roamed the savannas. Besides diurnal predators like lions and painted
dogs, they or their livestock would have to contend with nocturnal hunters
like hyenas. Predators were particularly dangerous in these virgin lands
since they had not yet learned to fear those who went of two legs.

The boys offered to escort the pilgrims, as they called themselves, across
the savanna to the town they had been heading for. There they might obtain
reinforcements and provide themselves with modern arms like airguns or even
repeating crossbows. The three boys were themselves headed in the same
general direction, and now they had a specific destination on the other
side of the sea of grass.

The first order of business was to take care of the dead. They recovered
the mangled bodies of the Frost Giants and their faithful hounds. Now
giants cremated their dead rather than buried them. So instead of gathering
wood for a pyre Corwin did the honors with his ball lightning. After a
simple ceremony with the dwarf leading the five pilgrims in prayer he
unleashed his ball lightning which consumed the corpses utterly.

Blaze was pressed into service to draw one of the wagons using harness
salvaged from the dead horses. The wagon transported only their
gear. Strong as he was Blaze could not do the work of a team of two -- so
no passengers. Everyone except the driver would have to walk. Driving
alternated between Ryan and Josh, but even Ryan weighed only a hundred
twenty pounds or so, hence not much of a burden. Blaze's load was well
within his capabilities.

Even Corwin would walk in solidarity with the rest. So did Derry but mostly
in his four legged form.

They also policed up the arrows and quarrels they had shot at the dogs plus
the air guns of the giants. The elves stuck with their long bows, so the
air guns went to Gregor and Ryan.

Sized for Frost Giants, the two weapons would be unwieldy but
manageable. The dwarf may have been the shortest of them all, only four
feet tall, but he was sturdily built and immensely strong. His race had
been created during the galactic empire of yore to explore and settle
high-gravity planets. Ryan was slender but had a stronger upper storey than
Josh or the willowy elves. The problem with the big gun was not just its
weight and length of barrel but that it was harder to charge the air
reservoir whose pressure was higher than in the infantry and carbine
versions like those Corwin and Axel carried. It took greater effort and
more time for Ryan to work the charging lever.

After rigging packs the conjoined party of eight set out. Scavengers were
already feeding on the the carcasses of the horses and the painted dogs. It
was past time to push on.

				Chapter 3. Bonding

The eight travelers camped beside a copse of trees, drawing water from a
spring fed brook. The atmosphere that evening was sober, given the loss of
two members of their company. The five reminisced about the fallen giants,
about their good humor and their fondness for word games. Hrolf and Jarl
would be missed.

"We should camp here for a few days." Corwin urged them. "You guys need to
train with your new weapons. You will have a good teacher. It so happens
that Axel here is one of the deadliest marksmen in the Commonwealth. He
served as a sniper during the war against the trolls."

Axel nodded.

"You guys need a time-out anyway to recoup your strength and to take
stock. This is as good a place as any to rest and to mourn and to practice
your shooting. Only then should we set out across the sea of grass."

Ryan wondered if Axel could simply jump them all directly to their
destination. How far could Axel teleport anyway? Would his gift let him
jump long distances or only locally?

Axel replied that he could teleport himself and anyone he touched to any
place he could see out to the horizon. He could also teleport long-distance
to any spot he had once reached via a space portal. That included the major
cities and strategic spots in the Commonwealth and Amazonia. The war
wizards had opened portals to those locations to give Axel exactly that
sort of strategic mobility.

"So could you jump us clear across the sea of grass?"

"Yes and no. That town we are heading for is well below the horizon, out of
view due to the curvature of the planet. Also I have never traveled there
via space portal. So to cross the sea of grass I would have to pop up into
the sky to extend my horizon then jump there and repeat as often as
necessary."

"That would get us across all right, but we would miss everything in
between. Your delver could not survey the depths for minerals or caverns or
aquifers which might supply artesian wells. Nor would the elves with their
Green Thumbs be able to gauge the fertility of the soil. In our travels,
yours and ours, the destination is almost beside the point. It is the
journey itself and what we find on it that matter."

"Well said." Ryan agreed.

Not long after they drew straws to establish the order for sentry
duty. Each of the eight would stand watch for an hour with the times
rotating forward on subsequent nights. That way all would get to stand the
first or last watch, always preferable to being wakened in the middle of
the night. With their enhanced constitutions Corwin, Axel, and Derry slept
less than the others anyway. Five hours a night was plenty for those boys.

The next morning, while the the elves prepared breakfast Axel used his
kukri to cut forked limbs from small trees and trimmed them into shooting
sticks. He also set an arrowhead into the base of their shafts, fitting the
tang into a slot he cut then wrapping it with twine. That would make it
easier to plant the stick into the ground.

Axel showed Gregor and Ryan how the devices would take much of the weight
of their airguns and steady their aim. After that they took some practice
shots and acquitted themselves well. The muscle memory from their crossbows
carried over to shooting an airgun.

Gregor nodded his satisfaction and said. "Hrolf and Jarl didn't get many
shots off so their ammo pouches were nearly full. Add in what we had in our
wagons, we have plenty of ammunition."

The following days passed without incident. They walked at an easy pace
given the dwarf's short stride. So a day's hike averaged less than twenty
miles including stops for the elves to check the fertility of the soil and
for the dwarf to delve what lay below. In answer to Corwin's questions he
explained that he was checking for much more than mineral deposits.

"Ore bodies are all well and good, but less important than a reliable
supply of water. Now streams can supply folks who live along its banks or
nearby, but most people will live on farms and have to draw water from the
water table or even a full-fledged aquifer, ideally without pumps through
artesian wells. I also check for cavern systems, the preferred habitat of
us dwarves though many of us do live in towns and cites alongside the other
races."

"Are these lands underlain with limestone?" Corwin asked.

"Not entirely though I take your meaning. Most caves do formed by
dissolution of limestone but sometimes in other rocks such as chalk,
dolomite, marble, salt, and gypsum. Not all of these are suitable for
habitation. Other types of caves such as lava tubes are formed by tectonic
forces. And erosion can excavate caves even in hard rock like granite."

"In a karst or limestone landscape like this I also gauge the potential for
the formation of sinkholes. We wouldn't want to build a fine new town only
to have the ground drop from under it."

"Oh?" Axel asked mischievously. "I here I had thought that you dwarves
liked to live in holes in the ground."

Corwin rolled his eyes. "Don't mind him, Gregor. He has spent too much time
in the company of the twins. Obviously their sense of humor, if you can
call it that, has rubbed off on him."

Gregor nodded understandingly. "That would be the famous twins Jemsen and
Karel who are notorious for their jokes and puns."

"The same."

"It's really impressive that the twins are now dwarf-friends twice over!
More power to them. And you yourself are a giant-friend and Axel here is an
orc-friend. Plus others in your circle of friend like your colleague Drew
Altair. More power to all of you."

With the wagon breaking trail the trailers could walk in pairs side by side
or even three abreast. Axel often found himself walking between the two
elves Elron and Eomer who took the opportunity to chat him up. All three of
them went sky clad or entirely nude with their scrumptious physiques
completely on display. Inevitably, the elves' hands would "inadvertently"
brush Axel's bare flanks or one the other would cup his rump playfully or
clap his shoulder in a comradely way. If they stopped for a moment to talk,
inevitably the elves would run their fingers lightly over his corrugated
chest and abs or ruffled his hair. None of these tactile attentions were
displeasing to the young human who loved to be stroked and petted.

Of course what the elves really wanted to do was to drag him down on the
grass and make love to the young beauty right then and there. And why not?
Slightly built and boyishly cute, with fair skin, Axel's face was dominated
by large green eyes set over heart-melting dimples. No wonder the elves had
taken a shine to him.

At one brief halt Elrond put his hand to Axel chin, turned his face to him,
then leaned in for a kiss. Axel did not resist. Instead he went with the
flow, and put his arms around the elf-boy. Emboldened, Elrond reach down
and fondled Axel's manly parts with the inevitable results. From behind him
Eomer pressed his nude body to Axel's back kissing his neck and shoulders.

Axel blushed at how he must look, bare-ass naked and erect in all senses of
that word, while two lovely elf-boys played with his body as everyone
looked on.

"You guys aren't calling a time out, are you, and maybe expecting to catch
up later?"

Axel knew that Corwin was right. Much as he wanted what the elf-boys had
started to continue, his tactical instincts were all against it. No way the
three of them could maintain situational awareness while making love. They
would be vulnerable. Indeed their separation from the others would make
both parties vulnerable. So he told Elrond and Eomer:

"Sorry guys, with predators about we gotta save it for later."

That evening the trio picked up where they had left off. The spot the trio
chose for their tryst was between the campfire and a briar which would
protect their backs. The dwarf and the humans chose a spot one third the
way around the circle to the right on the near side of the wagon where the
sentry would keep watch. Corwin and Derry's bed lay around to the left.

As the trio sank to their grass, Axel remarked:

"I hope Ryan or Josh won't be too disappointed."

"Don't worry about them. Those two fancy girls rather than boys, which is a
sad waste of fine boy flesh in my humble opinion." Elrond said
dismissively.

"Their loss, our gain," Eomer pointed out.

Rather than take turns for their first tryst with Axel the elves teamed
him. At first that meant each of them plugging the human boy at opposite
ends. It gave the two elf-boys a chance to kiss each other as well as the
delectable human they were fucking.

Who would not be aroused by the sight of Axel's delicate features, his trim
little body, and the shameless delight he took in male sex. Axel loved
being sandwiched in between two lusty young elves. It drove him wild with
desire, having a cock in each orifice wielded by experts in male love. Axel
did his best to pleasure both invading tools, working the muscles of his
throat and his ass to squeeze and knead, and excite till the pilgrims
spilled their seed into his bottom or down his throat. He loved to feel the
pulsing of their turgid members as they shot their wet warmth into him.

However, Elrond and Eomer also liked to double penetrate a boy's bottom,
that is get both their cocks up his ass at the same time. Axel's petite
physique, narrow hips,and pert rump made that particularly attractive and
exciting but also a bit difficult. After all, it was only natural for Axel
to be a bit apprehensive, given that the elf-boys stood nearly two hands
taller and endowed proportionally.  large the soldiers were. Still the
prospect of a double penetration was too exciting to turn down. The
elf-boys were so terribly sexy.

Axel straddled Elrond who had stretched out full-length, cock rampant, sank
to his knees, and sat down on the turgid member, slowly sinking back onto
his haunches letting the first cock plumb his depths. He rocked back and
forth a little, letting Elrond slide easily in his channel. When the
elf-boy was well seated up his chute, Eomer bent him forward, telling him
to kiss Elrond and lick his nipples. Meanwhile Eomer slid his own cock up
the back door into the tight chute already occupied by Elrond's cock. It
was a close fit since they were so much bigger and proportionally endowed.

With a double penetration you found out what it was like to be really and
completely fucked. Axel used his thigh muscles to lift himself up and down
on the twin shafts, for once not minding having to post as when riding a
trotting mount. It didn't take long for all the friction and prodding to
set him off. In turn his anal contractions brought both soldiers to a
simultaneous climax filling the boy with their manly juices.

That aside, each of the elf-boys eagerly took the boy separately. He was
the prettiest and sexiest thing either of them had ever fucked. Elrond
loved to look at Axel down on his knees, all humility and submissiveness,
pouty lips locked about his member, worshiping his manhood or was that
selfhood?  A natural submissive, Axel also enjoyed getting his ass
plowed. Eomer loved the way his large hands fit so well around the the
red-head's sharp hip bones as he pulled back on that small ass while he
thrust forward with his cock, feeling the warm flesh enclose it like a
glove.

They both loved taking Axel face to face, on his back, legs and heels in
the air. There is nothing so sexy as the face of a pretty boy rising to his
climax. With his small body trapped beneath him, the elf-boys could see the
Axel's arousal build and build, his eyes closing as his mind and body
concentrated on the good feelings coursing through him, readying itself to
let fly with his spunk. he liked nothing better than to have a man's cock
stimulate him to his own orgasm without even touching himself down
there. Getting fucked till you shot, that was the best way for a bottom boy
like him to get off, and he knew it.

After his ejaculation, the boy would look at them happily, his face lit up
with the post coital look that boys get, comprised half of pride at his own
cocksmanship and half of embarrassment for the mess he had made between
their bellies.

			Chapter 4. Birds

"I know it's a little early, but let's make camp over by those
cottonwoods." Ryan suggested.

The others agreed so Ryan turned the wagon toward a brook almost wide
enough to be called a river, its location signaled by the gallery forest of
cottonwoods lining its banks. The brook would provide both shade and water
for drinking and cooking. To everyone's delight, the stream even had a pool
deep enough for swimming.

Josh and Ryan plucked a fine bustard which Axel had brought down with his
carbine, dressed it, and set it to roasting on a spit. It would take quite
a while to cook, so the travelers went over to the bank of the stream,
stripped off, and plunged in. The cool water felt good on their overheated
and tired bodies. They were too tired for the usual splashing and grab-ass
games. Instead they just floated or sculled on their backs, chatting and
relaxing.

Even more than wiry sorts like Corwin and Axel, dwarves like Gregor with
their muscular and big boned physiques designed for high gravity planets
needed a floatation device, which in his case was made from a pair of air
bags salvaged from the bellows dwarves used for working iron.

Ryan did climb out for a moment to tip a hot rock from the fire into a pot
to boil water for a vegetable soup made of tubers dug from the ground,
local greens, flavored with herbs from their supplies. Ryan might not be a
master chef, but he was a darn good field cook.

"My compliments to the chef!" Axel declared to nods from everyone.

"Definitely better than the field rations the Army issued us in Amazonia"
Corwin agreed. I always wondered why they were so plain."

Ryan shrugged. "First there is the difference between fresh and preserved
foods. Remember refrigeration is not practical except in garrison. So the
quartermasters have to preserve meat by salting or drying or smoking. And
forget fresh dairy or produce. Besides not everyone likes foods with strong
flavors."

"Like the garlic my orc friends are so fond of." Axel pointed out.

"Exactly. Blandness is a necessary compromise that shows no favoritism to
any one regional cuisine."

"At least we could wash our food down with cider and water chilled in their
butts by our firecasters." Corwin allowed.

The next day they stopped several times to let the elves test the soil for
fertility while Gregor delved for minerals and caves. He was standing on
some flat rocks when something fell from the sky and hit the ground nearby
with a loud crack.

"Are my eyes playing tricks on me, or was I just nearly brained by a turtle
falling from the sky? He looked up only to have to duck as a huge bird
swooped down at him screeching angrily at the interloper which looked to be
cheating it of its prey.

"Whoa!" Gregor cried out in surprise, shying away.

The bird was a vulture with a wingspan of twelve feet. It grabbed the dead
terrapin and carried it off, screeching the whole time.

"What happened just now?" Gregor asked. It was Elrond who had the answer.

"It's not surprising that a cavern dweller like you Gregor would be
unfamiliar with wildlife. What you saw just now was a vulture which
specializes in eating bone marrow. Other vultures can strip a carcass of
its flesh but cannot get at the nutritious marrow locked inside the
bones. That resource is usually consumed by scavengers with powerful jaws
like hyenas who can crack the bones open, something impossible for any
bird. A few species of vultures will carry bones up into the air then drop
them on rocks to split or crack them open. Evidently this bird was using
the same tactic on a turtle."

"It looks like Axel was right after all about his flying monsters." Corwin
joked.

"It was monstrous enough, with wings spanning a dozen feet and able to lift
a turtle that weighed close to twenty pounds." Axel pointed out.

"Aye." Gregor agreed. "Heavy enough to crack my skull if it had hit."

Nor was that their last strange encounter with birds. The next day as they
picked raspberries the travelers were attacked by a clutch of magpies angry
that interlopers were poaching their favorite food resource. Gregor got his
scalp pecked so he forced his way into the thorny brambles for
protection. Poor Eomer and Elrond, sky clad as they were, they had no
protection from the thorns so could not take shelter like Gregor. Corwin
resolved the situation by sending a lightning ball up to explode in mid air
well away from the birds whom he did not want to hurt. The noise alone
frightened them away.

"Some sentry you are, Ryan." Gregor complained. "You were posted atop the
wagon to keep an eye out for trouble."

"Well sure, but I was to watch for painted dogs, lions, wolves, and bears,
and even another sky monster like the one that almost got you, but not
little birds." Ryan gave back defensively.

Gregor scowled.

"From now on I'll wear the leather helmet we dwarves use to keep from
cracking our skulls on low ceilings." he grumbled. He wore it for a couple
of days then took it off. It was just too hot to wear out in the open under
the direct rays of the sun.

One particularly fine area they traversed had already been claimed by a
mixed group of giants, elves, and humans: singles, couples, and whole
families. The giants had plowed and sown fields to wheat and maize, the
elves tended nut and fruit orchards and bush crops, while human immigrants
from the Western Plains ran livestock on the open range. Theirs was a
commercial operation which expected to supply the new towns springing up
all over South Varangia.

These settlers weren't worried much about painted dogs. They were armed
with air guns or repeating crossbows. More than a few had powerful magical
gifts like throwing lightning bolts and fetching and firecasting. And
precincts were guarded by whole packs of Molossian hounds. Painted dogs in
particular were shot on sight or trailed to their dens where both dam and
kits were killed. The tale of woe of the pilgrims just confirmed them in
the wisdom of their policy and practices and who could blame them?

The eight travelers pushed on toward their destination, the town of Aarhus,
which lay just beyond the edge of the sea of grass in a hilly area. Just
short of their goal, while still in tall grass prairie they encounter a
flock of flightless birds, descended from the ostriches of Old Urth only
larger.

The big birds stood ten or eleven feet tall and massed 400 pounds (181
kg). They were faster almost anything on two legs, could change direction
instantly, and had a powerful kick that can seriously injure or even kill a
man. Moreover the beaks at the end of their long muscular necks could
deliver a nasty knock too.

The mischief was upon Corwin that day for he decided that he wanted to ride
the ostrich.  Axel shook his head.

"What makes you think you can ride an ostrich? It's one thing to ride
bareback atop a complaisant unicorn or a horse that doesn't mind the
burden, but it is another to mount a wild animal that wasn't even built for
riding in the first place."

"Ah, but you forget that I grew up on the Eastern Plains. I started riding
soon after I could walk. There is nothing I cannot ride."

"Famous last words."

"Axel's right." Derry urged. "You might easily get hurt."

"So? I am a healer. I'll just fix myself up."

"And if you were knocked senseless?" Axel challenged.

"Then you my friend can teleport us to the hospital for magical
healing. Look I am going to do this. Wish me luck."

"You are going to need it" Axel told him. "How do you plan to mount it
anyhow?"

"Oh I am quite sure that I can get aboard. These birds cannot kick
backwards so that is how I will approach, from the rear."

"Go for it Corwin!" Ryan and Josh encouraged him. They were natural
equestrians themselves, both boys having been raised among the horse nomads
of the Western Plains.

Corwin stalked toward his chosen mount, a big male which had sunk to the
ground to rest, his long legs tucked under him. Dressed in green silks for
camouflage including a cap to conceal his blond thatch Corwin used all his
hard-won fieldcraft to sneak up on the careless bird. He jumped astride its
back, grabbing it by the neck and hung on as the bird sprang up hissing and
squawking. It ran hither and yon, changing direction sharply, trying to
throw his uninvited rider off his back. But Corwin's constitution had been
enhanced by druidical healing magic and more recently his own gift. He had
no trouble hanging on thanks to his more than doubled strength and faster
reflexes.

At first Corwin had a grand time, laughing and waving to his friends,
enjoying the sensation of speed and mastery of his steed even if he could
not direct it. Among the pilgrims all except the dwarf cheered him on, but
not Axel and Derry. They had already figured out that Corwin was now in the
predicament of the rider of the proverbial tiger. How could he safely
dismount?"

Corwin finally realized that too. What he if he slid off its back and it
attacked him? He certainly did not want to have to kill the poor beast with
ball lightning or his kukri. Sensing his distress Derry sent a thought:

<Do you want Axel to teleport you off its back?>.

<Maybe, but only if what I am about to try doesn't work.>

Invoking his healing magic, Corwin put the animal to sleep. It slowed then
stopped and slumped to the ground allowing Corwin to slip off its
back. Axel Jumped to his location and brought them both back to the
others. Corwin was chortling.

"That was great! In fact I think I will add Ostrich Rider to my titles. How
does this sound: Corwin Lord Klarendes of Dalnot, Holder of the Military
Cross for Valor, Mentioned in Dispatches, Giant Friend, Unicorn Rider, and
Ostrich Rider."

"I can top that list of impressive titles." Axel assured the others. In as
orotund voice as a boy his stature could manage Axel declaimed: "Know
gentlemen that you stand in the presence of no less than War Mage Sir Axel
Wilde, Holder of the Military Cross for Valor, Pioneer of Flight,
Peacemaker, Orc-Friend, and Brontothere Rider."

In Corwin's and Axel's circle of friends, occasional duels of impressive
titles were halfway between a tradition and a running joke, updated as the
boys acquired yet more titles during their many adventures.

"Fine Axel, but you didn't ride a brontothere just for fun. You had a
serious purpose." Gregor countered. "What Corwin did with that bird was
just damn foolishness. High spirits are one thing, but he should know
better than to take unnecessary risks."

"I am sure that you are right, Gregor," Corwin admitted, "but sometimes, a
guy just has to cut loose."

Axel nodded his understanding. There was still a bit of the reckless youth
Corwin had once been, for all that his wartime experiences had matured him.

Two days later Axel had a close call when a large hawk swooped down at his
head. At the last second Ryan warned him to duck so that the raptor's
talons tore at this scalp rather than his eyes. As a combat veteran Axel
was not in a mood to be merciful, not like with the magpies. As the hawk
turned to dive for a second attack Called Light and englobed the bird with
a cool blue white sphere of illumination which scrambled its brain
circuits.

"Nice shooting, if I can call it that." Ryan congratulated him.

"I had a lot of practice against the pestiferous pigeons which used to
perch on the ledges of the Institute. We finally strung thin wires an inch
or so high. That kept them from settling there entirely."

"What was so bad about pigeons?" Gregor asked Axel.

"Have you ever seen a cave inhabited by swallows or bats? The floor is deep
in dung which is politely called guano. Now inside a cave is one thing, on
a windowsill is another. Their dung dries out and turns to powder which
breezes carry indoors and even into the lungs of those inside, which is
positively unsanitary and unhealthful not to mention utterly disgusting."

Scalp wounds bled easily, and closing the wounds with stitching was
impractical. So Corwin helped Axel wash his scalp clean then closed his
cuts with his healing magic.

The group finally reached the town of Aarhus where the pilgrims took their
leave of Axel, Corwin, and Derry at a celebratory dinner at tavern owned by
one of their co-religionists. Two days later, having exhausted the limited
points of local interest, the three pushed on, taking the road to new
adventures.

Author's Note

This story is entirely fictional, with no resemblance intended to any
person living or dead.

If you have enjoyed this story and others like it, consider making a
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This story is one of an occasional series about the further adventures of
the characters introduced in the fantasy novel 'Elf-Boy and Friends' and
published by Nifty Archive. The chief protagonist of the novel, Dahlderon,
elf-boy and druid, will appear in these stories in a supporting rather than
starring role. Each story in the sequence stands on its own, with the focus
on one or a few of the original characters.

Readers who like these stories might want to try my two series 'Daphne Boy'
and 'Naked Prey' in the Gay/Historical section of the Archive. My 'Jungle
Boy' series of Hollywood tales is posted in the Gay/Authoritarian
section. The recent series 'Andrew Jackson High' relates the trials and
tribulations of five of its gay students. For links to these and other
stories, look on the list of Prolific Authors on the Archive.