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In 1552, I assisted my good friend Jakob Leonovich with the publication of his memoirs. The book was banned almost immediately in most kingdoms and free cities, due primarily to the presence of multiple chapters detailing his plentiful and scandalous ual adventures. Finally, these chapters have been compiled for your reading pleasure.
The Wizard Eremon, 1681
When I was a young man, I traveled far and wide fighting with the Lions Brigade. We were mercenaries, and we were good at it. They were once the closest family I had, and they made me the man I am now. Back then, I was lean and hungry for action, I still had both my eyes, and a body made of pure wiry muscle and fueled by animal instincts or so I thought. Then I met an interesting woman who showed me another type of fierce.
My mentor and best friend Karl Klassen had led me and two others to a distant outpost, beyond which lay many leagues of primeval boreal forest to the north, and great prairies to the south, until the cliffs fell into the Vidaisic Ocean. We had been hired by a local duke to find a fugitive knight, Sir Planton, who stood accused of murdering a lady, and see that justice was done. Over the countryside we had tracked him, until his trail led into the wilderness. It seemed he thought to try his luck surviving there until the trail went cold.
“We’ll set out tomorrow,” Karl told us over mugs of cold beer at the lodge. “Jakob will travel northeast, Iusef will travel southeast along the river, and Morton and I will cover the land in between, where the forests and fields meet. Our provisions will last long, but this land is rich to forage as well. Turn back after one week, and we should all meet here again in a fortnight.”
“Karl,” Morton said, “are there really giants living out there?”
“So it is said and there are people as well. You’re not scared, are you?” He roared jovially.
“Not a chance. If a bastard old giant tries to eat me, I’ll give him a stomachache with this!” Morton patted the butt of his flintlock pistol. I was still thinking about what sort of people might live here, far beyond the edge of any kingdom or clergy, but that soon passed from my mind when the pretty young barmaid returned with another round of beer. We cheered and toasted her, then each other, then the success of our mission, until we were thoroughly alesoaked and staggered off to sleep.
In the morning, I rose first and finished packing the last of my things into my backpack, filling my waterskin and oiling my sword and pistol. The other three were still lying in bed, hungover, and Karl was just getting up and rubbing the sleep from his eyes, when I was ready to leave. “Looks like Jakob’s in a hurry,” he mused. “Might as well get going then, lad.” I wanted to make some progress before I stopped for breakfast, as I had a lot of ground to cover, so I said goodbye for now to Karl and the other Lions, and hit the road.
The morning air was clear and still cool as I left the few buildings that made up civilization here. In only a few minutes, the dirt road faded to a narrow track and the outpost was out of sight amidst the trees. The birds twittered and the wind rustled in the branches, but otherwise I was soon completely alone. The great pine trees loomed over my head, the late summer sun shining down between them. The path narrowed again until it was merely a faintly worn patch of dirt running parallel to a ridge, giving me a landmark to follow along.
I had certainly crossed a few miles when I stopped for a break. The day had warmed significantly and I rolled up my sleeves to cool off. I ate and drank lightly from my rations. The solitude was amazing. I lived a wanderer’s life, but that meant traveling between towns, usually with Karl and the rest of them. Rarely was I so far from any other person, alone with my thoughts. I was a capable survivalist, but foraging and tracking usually served me in navigating war zones, not the untracked wilderness. Then I thought about what Karl had said about people living in the forest. Perhaps I wasn’t so alone as I felt right then. What would it be like, to be a hunter or a herder, instead of making my living cleaning up the affairs of dukes and knights and murderers, I thought. But on the other hand, I love wine and wenches too much to give up on my lifestyle completely. Perhaps I could be a fisherman some day, in a quiet village by the sea. Occupied by thoughts of other lives I might still lead, I picked up my bag and set to walking again.
Iusef and Karl had taught a little of what they knew about foraging, so I kept my eyes open as I traveled for fruit, nuts, or the leaves that would indicate edible roots. I spied small beasts and birds as well, but I had brought no bow or crossbow with which to hunt. If I wanted meat, I would have to find a pond and try fishing. That day, I found only a few handfuls of sweet blue berries, ones which Karl had said were certainly edible, and they added nicely to my trail rations. Come the evening, I built a small fire and settled in for the night. The fresh air and warm glow of the fire lulled me to sleep quickly, and I slept soundly.
I woke with the sun the next day, chilled by the cool night, but after a few miles hiking I felt much renewed. I was alert for any signs of human activity but saw nothing out of the ordinary. It felt like we were searching for a needle in an entire country of haystacks. Fortunately, by the midmorning it was warm again I wouldn’t want to be out here during the winter, I thought. If we didn’t find our quarry soon, he’d probably freeze to death in a couple months. Not that it would end any better for him if we did find him.
The day passed quietly like the last, as I followed the ridgeline deeper into the forest. That night, I stopped again in a little niche and built another fire. Consulting my map, I expected to come across a lake tomorrow or the day after where I might stop and fish a while, allowing me some fresh meat. I was fond of fishing anyways and had brought my kit with me. The sun set and darkness came as I thought of sitting by the lakeshore, waiting for a nice tasty fish to come by. Still letting my mind wander, I got up and walked a little ways from my camp to take a leak. As I shook off the last drop, I heard a rustle and spotted movement nearby and my brain instantly snapped back into focus. I was certain I saw a feminine shape watching me, before it moved behind a tree and didn’t emerge again. I watched and waited, stockstill except for my hand reaching to my sword, but saw nothing move for a minute.
I hurried back to the dwindling fire and stoked it up again, scanning around me urgently, but the woods were still again and there was no noise but my own breathing and the crackling campfire. Slowly, I relaxed. Maybe it had been nothing just a bird or a branch moving. Or perhaps it had been a forest spirit, come to spy on me or scare me off. It had looked so like a woman, though. If I was lucky, I thought, it was one of those ual type of spirits that preyed on hapless men than wandered into their domains. She’d certainly find me less than hapless, and I would enjoy going down fighting! I laughed a little at the idea. Regardless, I slept lightly that night, waking repeatedly and dreaming of strange shadowy women emerging from the forest.
I almost thought I was still dreaming when I finally woke to the sunrise. I took a few moments to clear my eyes, and then felt an eerie chill when I realized I really was being watched. A woman stood in the woods, gazing at me, with no indication how long she had been there. She was not far, and approached as I scrambled to sit up in my bedroll and reached for my broadsword. I couldn’t help but realize how beautiful she was her face graceful, with narrow eyes and a small nose, her skin a little tanned, her black hair in a braid, and her fit, strong body. She wore a plain skirt and bodice, her arms exposed. I had got to my feet now and drew my sword, holding it at my side as I spoke to her, “Who are you?”
She stopped walking and smiled. Then she leaned forwards and kissed the air, her eyes locked on me, then began to walk backwards. “Wait!” I said. I wanted to know more who was she? Why was she following me? Was she blowing me a kiss?
When I shouted, she started to jog, her back to me. I stuffed what little I had unpacked into my bag and fit my boots back on as fast as I could, then hurried into the forest after her. “This is how the bad spirits will get you,” I thought of Morton’s nervous warnings about monsters and magic. Then I saw her again, standing still and watching me. “Hey!” I shouted, and she took off running again. I chased after her, both of us at a full sprint. She was light on her feet, but I was fast as well she leapt over a fallen log blocking the path and I followed a moment later.
I almost lost my footing dashing through a pile of dead leaves, wobbled, and got my balance again, losing only a couple paces to her. Up ahead, I saw she was slowing she had reached the edge of a lake. She faced me as I slowed to a walk, until I was about ten paces away, both of us breathing deep to soothe our burning lungs we must have run at least a mile. She looked exhilarated, with a wide smile and flushed cheeks. “Who who are you?” I asked.
She said something I didn’t understand, then “I am Alhild. You are?”
“My name is Jakob.” She was slowly walking towards me, looking into my eyes with an intense interest.
“Jakob.” She repeated my name. “You are strong.” We were within arms’ reach of each other now.
“Thanks,” I said, a little uncertainly. “You’re quite,” I said, looking at her bare, muscular arms. I started to speak again but she cut me off with a kiss, pressing her face against mine. I kissed her back, surprised but not unpleasantly so. Her arms wrapped around me as she kissed me hungrily, moving fast and hard. Alhild pushed me back, wrestling me playfully to the ground without breaking her kiss. She was enthusiastic I felt her hands under my shirt, pulling it up over my head. She threw it into the branches of a tree nearby and studied my body for a moment, panting, then lunged down again for another kiss. I felt my cock harden, pushing against her heat where she was straddling me.
I pulled at the strings of her bodice, unfastening it. She shimmied her body, slipping out of it and exposing her bare chest, her beautiful breasts and sinewy abs. Never had I been accosted by a woman like this she seemed to want only one thing from me. I reached for her breasts but she caught my hands with hers. I didn’t try to resist as she pinned my hands down above my head and leaned down, her tits just over my face. I raised my head to kiss her nipples, one and then the other, then suckled at her tit. She gasped with pleasure and started to rock her hips over my hard cock, rubbing against me.
Alhild’s panting rose as she rocked back and forth on me, until with a sensual moan she stopped and sat up, holding my face gently as she pulled her breast free from my lips. I loved her taking the lead, looking imploringly to her for more. She stretched out one long, toned leg from her skirt, teasing me for a moment, then took off her skirt, revealing her quim and the pretty dark bush above it.
She bent down again, kissing my neck and my chest, as her hands worked my pants down, freeing my cock, which sprang up rockhard against her tummy. Alhild nuzzled up against my neck, kissing, then I felt her teeth as she bit me hard. I moaned, encouraging her as she licked across my neck and bit the other side. She raised her hips and took hold of my cock, bringing it to her wet pussy and gently rubbing against the tip, letting her wetness cover it until she finally let my cockhead enter her. She moaned, slowly going deeper, shifting her hips around and around. I pushed up into her, filling her cunt and making her exclaim. I embraced her, with one hand squeezing her ass as she rode up and down on my cock, her hands moving over me and coming to cradle my face. She kissed me again, moaning deeply into the kiss.
Alhild fucked me frantically, determined to have her satisfaction, as I tried to keep up. Holding me down with her hands on my chest, she sat up, her boobs bouncing up and down while she rode me. Her moaning grew louder and higher, until she yelped wildly with each thrust. With a cry, she took my cock all the way inside her, circling her hips for a moment until she shuddered and moaned, her legs shaking, her quim squeezing me tight until I felt I couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Alhild,” I said, the urge to complete overpowering me, as my balls tightened. I pushed up into her, lifting her up, as I emptied my seed deep into her warm pussy. I thrust again and again, until the pleasure faded and I felt drained. She lay on top of me, kissing me and nibbling at my lips, while I slowly softened and slipped out of her. She rolled over then, lying on her back, her expression blissful, cum dripping out of her.
“Now will you tell me what you want?” I sat up and leaned over towards her.
“You,” she paused, thinking. “You gave me a baby.”
I suppose I did. “And that’s what you wanted me for?”
“Yes! It was fun?”
“God, yes it was.” I kissed her, tasting her lovely lips. The breeze blew, making our abandoned clothes flutter, and I went to put my pants on before I caught a chill. I rinsed myself off in the lake quickly first.
“Why you are here?” Alhild asked me as I dressed.
“I’m looking for a man who came to this forest. He’s Anglic like me pale skin, tall, but darker hair, and about ten years older.”
“Why?” Alhild was donning her skirt, and I admired her wellformed legs and bottom once more before she covered them.
“He’s a murderer. He killed an innocent woman.”
“I don’t know. No more Anglic men here.”
“Who does live here? Just you?”
She frowned a little. “No, many people.”
I invited her to tell me more as I fetched and strung my fishing pole. We spent hours sitting by the lake, Alhild lying down with her head in my lap, and she told me of her life. Her people called the forest Odina (as best as I can write it down), and they lived mainly by herding reindeer, plus fishing and gathering. Her Anglic language was not bad, which she had learned from trading and visiting the farming settlements and outposts at the edge of Odina Forest.
“If you know other men already, why did you need me?” I asked her.
“More fun,” she laughed and brushed my cheek. “You are new to me.”
I hardly wanted to leave the lake, but after a late lunch of fresh fish with trail bread, I got back to the trail with Alhild coming along. “How long are you going to follow me?” I asked her.
“Maybe I will keep you,” she teased, “forever.” She was good company, telling me facts and stories about birds, beasts, and plants we passed. To confirm our bearing, in the afternoon we climbed a giant tree, one that towered over even the other great pines. Its branches were flat and strong, almost making a ladder to the top. She was fast, and I worked to keep up with her, until we reached a lookout. From here we could see miles of quiet green canopy, sitting next to each other in the branches. Then, she pointed out a disturbance in the distance. I followed her pointing finger and realized what it was the head and shoulders of a giant, wading through the trees like a man through a field of corn. Morton would be shocked when I told him. We returned to the ground quickly after that, and adjusted our path to the south hoping to avoid an encounter with the giant.
That night, we cuddled up together by our little fire, both undressed down to the waist. I had my hopes she would want to fuck again, but aside from a few tender kisses she was uninterested. Being so close to her, her naked bosom out, I felt my erection growing again. She noticed too, and she ran her hand along the underside of my shaft for a time, petting it, then when I felt totally aroused, she smiled naughtily and lay down to go to sleep. Still, just her presence, our hands on each others’ bodies, left me warm and content until we passed into sleep together.
When I woke, Alhild was already up on one arm beside me, her hand wrapped around my cock again. Whether she had been touching me in my sleep I couldn’t say, but I had a tremendous morning erection. “Ready?” she asked.
“I can’t wait,” I said, putting my arms around her and pulling her down for a kiss. Our lips wove together, less frantic and more sensual than the last time, while she stroked me off under the thin blanket. I rolled her onto her back and kissed her down her cheek to her neck, her breath quickening with the lovely, ticklish feeling, then down to her tits again. My tongue traced her around her nipples, then left each with a kiss before moving lower, now covered by the blanket. Her flat tummy I licked all over, kissed her navel, and finally down into her purse. Now she ran her hands through my hair and moaned with surprise and curiosity perhaps this was an experience she’d never had before.
I started slowly, lapping my tongue across her pussy lips, then sucking on them. She was getting wet, and her hands gripped my hair tight, holding me against her. Alhild moaned, as I spread her purse apart with my tongue and pushed deeper into her. Her legs wrapped around my head, squeezing me in closer with her thighs. I loved her delicious taste, so rich and fine, exploring her with my tongue. “Ahhhhh… kisskiss,” she moaned, “Kisskiss.” Her quim leaked with her love. I brushed my tongue over her clit and her grip on me tightened. I kissed her sensitive knot so gently, barely touching it with my lips, until she pulled my hair hard. Clearly she didn’t want any more teasing I sucked on her clit softly, then hard, until I brought her over the edge. Alhild screamed into the still morning, her legs flexing and squeezing my head tight, her pussy releasing a small squirt of her sweet water into my mouth.
She pulled my hair again, releasing me and bringing me face to face with her again. She was blushing and looked almost shocked. I kissed her, letting her taste her own sweet juices left on my lips. My cock brushed against her slit, and slowly I entered her. She embraced me and her fingers dug into my shoulder as I filled her quim.
“Again,” she whispered. “Again, again, again.” I thrust into her, quickening, her hips rising to meet mine with each push. Her legs crossed around me, holding me in, as our excitement built. Alhild’s hand came down to her clit, rubbing her to her own delight. “Again please!” She moaned in my ear, and I could hold back no longer. I came, my cock reaching deep and filling her womb with cum. She groaned and trembled, until finally we both collapsed exhausted.
“I liked the… kisskiss,” she whispered. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” I kissed her cheek.
We lay together for a time, our bodies pressed together. Finally, we rose and dressed, and had almost finished breaking camp when Alhild said, “I am going today.”
I was shocked. “Going away? You’re leaving me?”
She nodded.
“I thought you wanted to keep me forever?” I smiled weakly, thinking of her words yesterday. I told myself I was being foolish, that of course she couldn’t stay with me, that she had her own life and I had mine. But my heart sank regardless.
She shook her head. “I can’t.”
“OK,” I said. “You’re right. I need to go on anyways.” We hugged, then kissed, then drew apart. My heart was heavy, and looking at her face she felt the same.
“You go east, that way,” she directed. “I must go north, this way. I may see you again, soon. Goodbye, Jakob. I like you.”
“Goodbye, Alhild. I like you, too.” I looked over my shoulder until I could barely see her blow me a kiss, and then she was lost to the forest again. The next two days passed in a strange mood, as if a heavy warm cloud lay over me. I was not too sad to be parted from Alhild, or so I told myself we had certainly enjoyed our time together. But to come from solitude into such an intimate connection, and then abruptly back to solitude again left me with an odd mix of feelings. To think that now she may be carrying my child…
ero
