The Chronicles of Rapina, Chapters 2-4 RIVER OF TEARS Back to the, Penance, page [Rapina]002 River of Tears [Rapina]003 Pillage [Rapina]004 Winds of Fate ------------------------------------------------------- [Rapina]002 River of Tears Rapina walked quickly by the light of the moon for half an hour until she was well out of town. Then she took Evangeline's holy symbol out of her pocket. Rapina took the symbol off it's gold chain and replaced it with the tear-drop shaped crystal mage-light. She put the light's wire hook and the reverend's holy symbol back in her pocket. The creek was cold but Rapina refused to step out of it for over an hour. When she did step out, she stuck to the shore and tried to make better time, nearly running. She jumped over the creek from time to time, sometimes walking in the creek for a number of yards to confuse her trail. After about three hours Rapina saw the first signs of dawn and sat down on a mossy log to rest. The creek flowed Southwest and Rapina knew that it flowed into a river that ran South. She could follow that river to whatever even larger river it flowed into. Rapina got back up and began to walk, she was surprised at how well she was holding up. She took off a shoe and examined her foot. There were calluses where there had previously been none. She looked down her robe at her slightly flushed and definitely swollen breasts. She still held a great deal of the reverend's energy stored in her body, and as long as she did, it would keep her whole. Rapina left the creek and went directly West. She could get to the river faster that way. While she walked through the woods Rapina found a walking stick. It was over long, but she did not have time to be fussy. Scarcely two hours after dawn, Rapina froze. She heard the baying of hounds. They were still quite distant, but they filled her with fear nevertheless. Had the constable realized she'd taken the creek and set dogs on either side of it in hopes of picking up her trail? She hoped not, but she feared so. Rapina picked up her pace. At last Rapina made it to the river, but the hounds were gaining. Rapina realized she might have to swim for it if the dogs got too close. She stopped and took off her robes. Digging in her bag, she took out the panties and bustier and put them on. She tied the money pouch on to the bustier by one of the garter straps and put the money down her panties. She put the holy symbol in the mage-light's pouch and did the same with it, then she put the reverend's robe in the bag and put the acolyte's robe over her lingerie. She could take the robe off quickly if she needed to swim. Rapina stepped into the water and jogged down stream. The constable, no doubt, was on horseback. Tears rolled over Rapina's high cheek-bones as she strained to go faster. She did not want to hang, it was not fair. She had not meant to kill reverend Evangeline, but he had killed and raped many times over and deserved what fate had dealt him. No matter how fast Rapina ran, it seemed the hounds gained, then they stopped baying. They were already at the river. Rapina's mood darkened as she ran through the shallows along the river. She scoured her mind for some way to outwit her pursuer. She hoped the constable would not know which way to go. She hoped he would go upstream instead of down, but when next she heard a barking dog, her heart sank, but as she rounded a bend in the river, her face brightened with a smile. A part of a tree three feet in diameter was precariously trapped in the middle of the river floating against some rocks. Rapina raced towards it, trying to reach it before it escaped the trap. When she jumped onto the log, she was nearly exhausted. It only took a few good hard pushes against the rocks with her walking stick to win her freedom. The log gradually gained momentum as the river's current moved it along. Behind her on the log she road were the stubs of a few branches sticking into the water. One stuck stright up into the air behind her. Rapina tightly tied the cloth sack to this branch and then concentrated on steering the log using her walking stick as a pole. The intermittent barking of the dogs grew gradually more faint, as the river's rapid current carried her away. Rapina's battle against the constable was behind her. Evangeline's family would hunt her, but they would not catch her easily just outside her hometown as the reverend and constable had no doubt caught other young women who had sought to elude them. The day was long and exhausting. The river ran fast and Rapina was often called on to steer the log through rapids. Fortunately, it did not matter so much if the log scraped the bottom or hit things, as long as Rapina kept her legs up out of the way. Mile after exhausting mile slipped by before Rapina beached the log on the shore of a pool formed in one side of the river and tied it securely to the bank with a vine. Scrounging in the half-light of evening, Rapina found a few edible plants. She was grateful for her Aunt's training. Without it, she would not have known what she could eat. At last, Rapina laid Evangeline's robe down on some boughs and fell into an exhausted sleep. When Rapina awoke, it was not quite morning. She expected to be sore and stiff from exertion and to have to deal with several abrasions she'd suffered from the bark of the tree she'd ridden on and various rocks she had scraped on her way down the river. Instead, when she woke she felt stronger, restored, vigorous. Her muscles felt strong, as though she had prudently exercised them by traveling the river for a few hours over several days instead of exhausting herself on the wild river for more hours than a girl of her strength and stamina could handle. Rapina smiled, reverend Evangeline was saving her life with his own life's energy. Rapina opened the acolyte's robe and looked down at her at her chest. Evangeline had been a powerful man. Though her breasts were not quite as swollen as they had been the day before, they were still engorged with energy and overflowed the cups of the bustier. Her nipples still tingled and stood erect at the slightest provocation. After a breakfast of wild herbs, Rapina mounted the log and released it back onto the river. She knew the constable might have ridden all night for fear that Evangeline's family, would fault him for shirking, but the river had carried her with tireless speed. She saw no sense trying to steer the log by mage-light for it was too risky, but she saw the sense in using every bit of daylight there was. Rapina left with the dawn and rode the roaring river for another day. After nearly a week of riding the river, Rapina had gotten it down to a routine. She stopped by the riverside whenever she saw a particularly good stand of edible plants from the water and even used the wire hook from the mage light, some of her hair and a worm to catch a fish she'd spotted in a river pool. She was not eating enough, but she was surviving. The energy she held from the reverend was slowly draining away as she faced each days cuts and bruises, though she had greatly reduced the number she sustained as she became more proficient at river riding. The river itself had grown considerably since she started her journey on the overgrown stream near her hometown. Her pole had become useless in the deeper water, forcing her to fashion a paddle from the dry husk of an otherwise rotted log. Rapids were a less frequent occurrence, but when she did run into them, the shear volume of water gave them greater power than they had ever had before. Thus when she heard the now familiar roar, Rapina brought up her paddle and braced herself for action. She looked around her. A number of other logs were floating in her vicinity, not something she really liked since the water might toss one her way if it got too wild. Rapina screamed and fought and laughed as she ran the rapids until suddenly she realized the roar was so much louder than before, and then it was too late. Rapina was airborne, the waterfall looked from her point of view to be a hundred feet high, maybe more. She screamed and then remembered she had better breath before she hit the water. When the log hit the water in sounded like an explosion. The water stung and nearly knocked the wind out of her. She was pulled under and nearly drowned before she fought her way to the surface. She shed the acolyte's robe beneath the falls and by luck found a log shortly after she surfaced. A pity it was not the log she had been riding before. The cloth bag and its contents were lost, though Rapina had begun to store the razor in the pouch with Evangeline's holy symbol after fashioning the paddle. It was all she could to pull herself over it. The last thing she remembered was coughing and coughing, she could not stop coughing. ----- [Rapina]003: Pillage ******************* Author's Note: From chapter 3 until chapter 26 the story was co- authored by Brian L. who added a nice dimension and several characters. He handled Doanthalas as his lead character and wrote just about everything Doanthalas said. He also made up quite a number of supporting characters for which we both wrote. These include Drake, Edgar, Kent, Red Jack, Roger, Froggy, Logan, Jink, Trevor, Lord Heinrich, Lady Cinid, and Adrianna Li'Yeiraun, Elizabetta Paolo and various other more minor characters throughout the segment he coauthored. In the end real life left him no time to write so I wrote Doanthalas out of the story and continued with the action. Brian added a great deal to the story and it was a lot of fun working with him. He will be missed. -Rapina ******************* Just a few days ago they were simple farmers following in their fathers' footsteps. But today they were river pirates. Or so they thought. Taking this fishing boat had been easy enough, but tougher challenges lay ahead. The ship cut through the slow moving water easily. The three "pirates" kept the sail furled; they wouldn't need it. Besides they had learned the hard way about when and when not to unfurl the sail. A particularly strong breeze had almost overturned their boat and ended their career of piracy prematurely. It was touch and go, but little by little they were picking up the tricks of the trade. They had already worked out a schedule where there were two of them awake at all times while the third slept. Thus far it had worked out well and if they were lucky they would reach their destination. It was midday and Drake was on watch while Edgar guided the ship. Kent slept soundly on one of the benches towards the aft. Drake stretched his back. Sleeping on those benches was extremely uncomfortable, but they were all slowly getting used to it. "Edgar! Rocks ahead! Bear port!", Drake yelled spying an outcropping of rocks in the water ahead. He smiled at his knowledge of "sea-speak" as he and his friends called it. Everyday he felt more and more like a pirate, but he had yet to taste blood. They all did. Drake reminisced about youthful games. He had always been the captain. After all he was the biggest, strongest, and oldest. Kent was the smartest and the smallest. And Edgar was the quiet one. Kent would usually be first mate and Edgar would be the crew. But they would switch off when Edgar got tired of taking orders. That was the thing with Edgar...sometimes he would get a little crazy if things didn't go his way. He was tenacious and he had a very short fuse. Although they were a mismatched group they always seemed to get along well. The three boys were all around the same age. Kent and Drake were both seventeen and Edgar was sixteen. Having spent their lives on the farm working for their fathers they were strong boys. The past few days on their newly "acquired" longboat had bronzed their skin. Drake scanned the water and thought about his father. His father would skin him alive if he ever got his hands on him. Not only did he abandon his family, but he had also taken his father's sword and his family's savings. It wasn't a whole lot...about 12 gold pieces, but it was all they had...or used to have. Drake smiled at the thought. He was beginning to like this pirate business. Kent had a similar story, but his family had not been as well off as Drake's. He had only gotten a dagger and 20 silver pieces from his looting. Still it was better than nothing. Edgar wouldn't tell the other two about what happened when he left. He would just smile cruelly, pat his belt pouch, and swing his sword around in the air. The other two knew better than to push the topic. Edgar got out of hand when he was mad and they knew that pushing him would anger him. So they let it go, but still they wondered. Drake squinted as he looked ahead. It looked like something was floating in the river, probably another log. He grabbed an oar and prepared to push the log aside when they got closer. As they neared the log, however, Drake noticed something else. It looked like a figure draped over the log. "Edgar! Wake up Kent and send him up...to the fore. But before you do that...give me...all stop!" Drake ordered. Edgar clumsily brought the ship to a not-quite full stop before casting anchor. He was curious to see what Drake was up to, but first he had to wake Kent. Kent sputtered and mumbled as he stared at Edgar with half-closed eyes. "time...for...my shift...already?" he asked. "Nah. Drake needs us up front. Captain's orders ye know." Edgar smiled at his little joke unfunny as it was. Kent just stood up and shuffled towards the bow. Edgar was close at his heels singing children's lullabies just to irk him. "Quit acting like a bunch of kids and help me here!" Drake shouted. "I think we've found our first pirate treasure!" He smiled. How fortuitous they had been. The most beautiful woman any of them had ever seen had just floated right up to their ship. She wasn't moving, but that didn't mean she was dead. He sure hoped not. Edgar and Kent both gasped when they saw the woman. Drake made as if to strike them and, taking the hint, they hopped to, helping him pull the woman into the boat. She was truly an amazing sight to behold! Luckily the log hadn't overturned and drowned her. "easy now! Don't drop her! Kent go grab something to dry her off with!", Drake ordered. "Let's ease her onto the deck Edgar..." "Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?" Edgar asked. He was clearly taken aback by her beauty. Farm girls just didn't measure up to one this beautiful. Kent returned with some blankets and they proceeded to dry her off. They couldn't help but touch her and admire her as they dried her off. "She's practically naked!", Kent exclaimed. "We had better remove those panties and that boostery." He smiled at the thought of what lay beneath. "Hey look at this." Drake said holding up a pouch. "It's called a bustier you cod-brain!" Rummaging through a couple of pouches tied to the bustier by its garter straps, he found some coins, a holy symbol, a razor and a wire hook. He also found a pendant and a glowing thing, each on its own fine chain around the woman's neck. Not being particularly religious he tossed the holy symbol aside Kent picked up the discarded holy symbol and held it up to the light, "Hey fin-head, this thing is solid gold!" "So what, you see any jewelry stores around here?" Drake said as he proceeded to count the coins. The glowing thing would probably come in handy as well. Edgar ran his fingers through the woman's hair before volunteering for the "duty" of removing her wet "clothing". Drake and Kent wanted to do it as well, but why fight over her? "What do we do with her?" asked Kent. "What if she's someone important? What is someone comes looking for her?" "She's ours now! If anyone comes looking for her they're gonna have to fight three bloodthirsty pirates!" Edgar said with glee. Drake just shook his head and said, "First of all we're going to need something to give this pirate, Red Jack, if we don't want to end up killed by his crew. Second of all I don't think anyone who's looking for her would be able to find her very easily on this river. It's too long and it gets very wide in places, besides, before long we'll be sailing onto the river Augustana and it's even bigger. We should be able to outrun anyone that comes looking for her. Fighting is not an option! At least not yet!" Drake said. "Don't forget that we were farmers up until a few days ago. None of us really knows how to sword fight that well. Finally, we are pirates! And that means we get to do whatever we want to do with her. Pirates pillage, plunder, and rape! We've plundered...or is it pillaged? Who cares! We've already done the pillaging and plundering...all that's left is...yeah. That's the one. My favorite of the three." The trio laughed a hearty cruel laugh at Drake's joke. Edgar removed the woman's bustier first. They all just stared for a few minutes. Her breasts were perfect! Big and shapely with perky nipples! Just the way they liked them! They squirmed in their seats as Edgar proceeded to remove her panties. This wasn't the sort of treasure they had envisioned when they dreamt of being pirates, but none of them had any complaints. "Won't Red Jack be mad if we take advantage of her before he gets to?" Kent asked. The corner of Drake's mouth curled into a smile. "Who's to say we didn't find her AFTER some evil nasty bandits had already raped her? Besides we need to make sure that the goods weren't damaged during her rough trip through the river." "I like the way you think Drake." Edgar smiled. He tossed the panties and the bustier towards the back of the boat. "Who goes first?" Before anyone could reply the woman groaned and her eyes fluttered open. Someone was fiddling with her left nipple and her head felt like it was about to split open. Her headache subsided to a dull painful throb as her eyes focused. She was in a boat and three men were looking down at her naked body. Rapina started to sit up, but her vision swam and she fell back. As nauseous as she was, she felt something tickling her nose. Rapina tried to heal herself with the reverend's energy, but it was gone. Suddenly she remembered the waterfall and nearly drowning. The reverend's life force must have saved her, but evidently there had not been enough to fully heal her body. Rapina decided just to open her eyes, the movement of the boat was bad enough without her adding her own movement to it. When everything came back into focus she found herself confronted with three men. At second glance she noticed they weren't quite old enough to be men. They looked closer to her own age. They were attractive, though. All were muscular and tanned. The tallest had dark brown hair and hazel eyes. His strong jaw showed a few days growth of stubble. He exuded confidence and, even in her present condition, Rapina could feel a great deal of lust radiating from him. The one of medium build had more rounded features, long hair and blue eyes. He wore a crooked smile and had an odd look in his eyes. The smallest of the bunch had an air of intelligence about him. His auburn hair and brown eyes seemed to note every subtle curve of Rapina's body. Rapina wasn't sure who they were, but she was sure of one thing, they all desired her. Their desire virtually crackled in the air between them. Rapina felt herself growing wet even though she was in no condition for sex. "I - thank you for rescuing me. I feel so sick. I nearly drowned," Rapina mumbled weakly. Her stomach felt as if it were about to move into her mouth, or maybe it would join her throbbing head. She wasn't sure. Smiling, Edgar moved his face closer to Rapina's. "Don't be thanking us just yet, pretty. Heh. There'll be plenty o' time fer that later. Heh." He licked his lips and moved even closer. Hot breath washed over Rapina. Part of her was revolted by the man's callous, aggressive attitude, while another part, namely the one between her thighs responded to the man's desire. She nearly sneezed the lust from these young men was tingling her nose so strongly. Yet she felt so nauseous. Rapina tried to think what she should do. She had nearly drowned and may have hit her head when the log she was on hit the water or when she was attempting to surface. Her memory of the events was sketchy at best. She remembered fighting to the surface but not what blows the river dealt her before that. Kent looked concerned. True he wanted to have his way with her, but right now she didn't look well at all. "C'mon Edgar. Give her some time to rest. She's had a rough time." When Edgar flashed him an angry look Kent shrank back. Clearly Edgar intimidated him. "Back off Edgar! He's right! Drake ordered. You can have your fun later, but for now she rests. Go get her some food and water. We don't want her to die on us before we meet up with Red Jack." Edgar flashed him a look of annoyance before stomping off towards the back of the boat. Turning back towards Rapina drake smiled. His smile could not hope to disguise the look of lust in his eyes, but that didn't matter. There was something else about Drake that Edgar lacked; control. The young man looked Rapina up and down before speaking. "Eat and then get some rest. It'll be a few days before...well you just rest." Rapina was very worried about her condition. She knew from her training with her Aunt that a person who had nearly drowned or who had had a concussion could wake up from either, only to die within a day. Turning to Kent Drake asked, "How long do you figure we have until we meet up with the river Augustana?" Kent considered the question. "Without a map I can't be sure, but from what I've gathered talking to fishermen I'd say not more than five days. Probably less." He moved out of the way as Edgar returned with the food and water for Rapina. Drake took the food and water from Edgar. "Let's get moving. Kent, go back to sleep. I want you rested for your shift. Edgar, raise anchor and let's get moving." They both nodded and headed off to their respective places. "Here you are, pretty. Go slow. We don't want you choking to death. The name's Drake, What's yours?" he asked. Rapina was about to answer, but her consciousness slipped away. She did not know how long she slept, but it was dark when she again stirred. Drake was worried. As soon as Edgar had returned with her food the woman had blacked out. He and Kent had tended to her not wanting to lose their gift. She had responded only slightly, refusing food but drinking some water in one of her semi-conscious awakenings. It was now a day later and she showed no sign of improving. She had to live. They had nothing else to offer Red Jack. He stroked her hair and was very tempted to climb on top of her and have his way with her right then and there. "Nah," he thought. "I've laid with a couple women who acted like they were dead. I'll wait for this one to wake up." He stood up and looked to the horizon. "Farm girls..." he laughed aloud. "It almost wasn't worth the trouble of bedding them; might as well be having sex with some knothole in some tree for as much life as they showed." Rapina's voice was the whisper of weakness, she felt no better than she had earlier. "D...Drake, Dra...ke? She reached one hand up to grab Drake's collar, but her arm would not go up that high before it started to fall. Rapina's hand fell on the smooth metal of his belt buckle instead. With only the ghost of her former strength, she drew him towards her. Drrr...ake? I, I think, think I'm dieing. Please, please take me... gently, one... last... time. He was startled from his musing by a weak pulling on his belt buckle. He looked down to see the woman struggling to maintain consciousness. She mumbled his name and something about him taking her now...one last time. All thoughts of Red Jack vanished as his teenaged libido kicked in. There was no denying the fact that he wanted her more than anything. Drake eased himself down towards the woman... He fumbled with his buckle for a moment before he managed to get his belt off and his pants down. He didn't even bother to take off his pants or his boots. As long as they were out of the way he didn't care. Right now there was only one thing he wanted and that was to be inside of this gorgeous woman. What Drake lacked in finesse he more than made up for with sheer desire and youthful exuberance. He flung the blankets off of her and mounted her roughly. His penis had hardened and was throbbing so much that it almost hurt. He needed the release that only she could bring. It took him a few tries to push inside of her with his mind being clouded by his lust but he managed. Rapina clung to Drake's lust. Her tiny thread of consciousness was filled only with his throbbing desire. Though she knew she was near death, something in her began to respond. She could feel it as if it were a warmth in the distance. She willed herself to stay focused, to stay awake for just a little while. It hurt a bit at first, but as she became wet his body coursed with pleasure. Never before had he felt such a divine sensation. The warm silky wetness enhanced his desire more and more. His mind clouded over as he pushed harder and harder. All he could think of was pushing harder and deeper. The pleasure was immense. He grunted with every thrust and sweat began to run down his body. Rapina felt a bit of pain at first, but that soon subsided as Drake's energy started coursing into her. Although she was too weak to respond in other ways, somehow her inner muscles, filled with the heat of his energy, began to caress him. Rapina was too weak to draw on him as she had on the reverend, but she tried to open herself to his energy as much as possible, saving her strength for the moment of his orgasm, clinging to a thread of consciousness concentrated on his lust. He was not particularly gentle, but Rapina was so close to death that the nausea his jarring thrusts raised seemed far enough away that she was able to avoid retching. At first the woman barely responded, but soon she began to move more and more within. She was obviously experienced and it wasn't long before Drake exploded inside of her. Rapina could feel the energy build, and it became a little easier for her to remain conscious. Then it was here, he was coming and although, her response was sluggish, Rapina drew with all her puny strength. His orgasm began as a familiar rush of pleasure, then suddenly he reached new heights as his pleasure intensified. He could not remember ever having come so deep or so long. When it was over, he collapsed on top of her, spent and shaking with the tremors of orgasm. Tired as he was he lifted his head to look at her. Rapina smiled briefly before fading into unconsciousness. Drake was young and virile, and Rapina had been able to absorb a good deal of energy, she could feel the tingle run through her body as she briefly slept. "Wow! Red Jack will NOT be disappointed with you! Heh," Drake said between pants. Rapina drifted for a few moments as Drake's energy eased her injuries. His youthful store brought her back from the edge of darkness, but she knew that she must not stop now; she hungered, alive enough to know what she must have. Edgar had seen everything. The boat was too small for any sort of privacy. "Damned Drake gets to have all the fun while I do all the work." he hissed under his breath. "He'll probably kill her...well if that happens I'll just have to kill him." He smiled a wicked smile and resumed his duties. As the woman slept Drake stood up and pulled up his pants. Red Jack would be pleased. As he buckled his belt a curious look dominated his face. Somehow the woman looked better. Her face wasn't as flushed and she seemed to be breathing easier. That was odd. Drake figured that having sex with her would have hurt her condition not helped it. As Rapina's consciousness resurfaced there was a smile and a word on her lips, "Mmmm... mmmore...please, again. The woman was regaining consciousness! And she wanted more! What was going on here? Drake began to worry. He came from a superstitious family so things like this tended to make him edgy. He needed time to think. Edgar! He turned to the back of the boat. "Edgar! She's feeling better! Care for a roll in the hay with our lovely 'guest'?" Drake shouted. Drake's words surprised him. Maybe Drake wasn't so selfish after all. Any more thought on the subject vanished as Edgar rushed to the fore. Right now he was going to have some fun. Drake smiled at Edgar's exuberance. He knew that Edgar would have the greatest sex of his life. Walking towards the aft he considered the woman. Could she be a witch? Or was Drake just imagining things? "I'm probably worrying over nothing," he thought. "Got this superstitious nonsense from my folks is all. The food we gave her did her good. Yeah. That's it." Edgar practically jumped on top of the woman in his excitement. He caught himself so he wouldn't crush her with his body, however. An odd look was in his eyes as he unbuckled his belt and dropped his pants. "Now pretty, Edgar is gonna show you a good time. Yes. Better than Drake and better than Kent could ever hope to do! Heh", he practically cackled. Rapina felt the man's lust as he neared her, this was Edgar, and something about his lust reminded her of Reverend Evangeline. Edgar thrust himself inside of her roughly and his hot breath washed over her face. He licked her face as he thrust with a savagery he had been holding back until now. He thrust harder and deeper. It hurt and he knew it. But that's what he wanted. He wanted to hurt her. He liked to hurt people and this woman was just another on the long list of people he had hurt. Rapina was glad Edgar had not been first, she was still quite weak, but was able to reposition her hips to better absorb the kick of his wild thrusts. Her loins devoured him, her strength was not great, but it was enough to reliably absorb his energy. For all of his savagery Edgar was not immune to the pleasure of this woman's flesh. As he thrust with spittle-flecked lips an incredible sensation coursed through his body. Never before had he experienced such ecstasy. It wasn't long before he gave a last violent thrust and a deep grunt. His body shook as he came inside of her. Rapina drew Edgar's power eagerly but not so strongly as she would have liked. She needed these young men, and she did not want them to be so drained that they would realize she was more than just a woman who enjoyed her desires. Edgar moved his face close to the woman's and the look in his eyes had become dangerous. Edgar smiled evilly and then sat back breathing heavily. "Now that's a good fucking woman. Or is she a good woman for fucking? Or is it both? Ah who cares? Ha!" he exclaimed. "Thanks, just wish I was not so sick," Rapina said weakly as she went limp. Though she probably could have staid awake, she did not want her recovery to seem too rapid. Rapina could sense the obvious danger in Edgar; he was neither stable nor nice. He was sure to be a problem. Rapina vowed she would deal with him carefully. Ironically, her power of suggestion had been useless with these young men. So far, none were considerate or effective enough lovers to bring her to orgasm, and that was the only time she could touch their minds. Rapina had been able to use suggestion to heighten the reverend's lust, but she did not know if she could influence men in other areas, and she was not likely to get a lot of practice at the hands of Drake or Edgar. Rapina decided to go to sleep, then when she felt better she would find out just how these men and the vague memories she had of them talking of piracy fit together. [Rapina]004 Winds of Fate Although he tried to keep his eyes on the river ahead and his mind on his duties, Kent's eyes and his mind seemed to wander back to the woman lying beside him. She was extremely beautiful. More beautiful than any woman Kent had ever seen. And she seemed to be recovering well. Rapina woke as the young men changed shifts. Kent was awake now, and since he seemed the least intimidating of the three, Rapina decided to prop herself up and see if she could talk to him. Although she ached in places from sleeping in the boat, she knew she no longer had to worry about the concussion she probably once had, and even though she felt her lungs were not fully well, it did not seem as though nearly drowning would kill her after all. Rapina slowly rubbed her head. "Ohhh goodness, I think I got brained going over the falls. They came up so suddenly." Even though her head felt perfectly fine now, Rapina remembered to complain about it. After all, it *had* hurt horribly before Drake and Edgar had unknowingly provided the power to heal it. "Yeah. I'd say you took a nasty spill. You were practically drowned when we fished you out of the water. How did you wind up floating in the river anyway?" he asked. A powerful man in my hometown decided that, since he liked the way I looked and I was a bit wild with my boyfriends, I wouldn't mind if he enslaved me as his plaything. He was wrong. After about a week, I got away, and the river was the only way I could think of to *really* get away from him. He had been preying on the young women of my town for years. He was not a nice man. Rapina looked at Kent, and then glanced at Edgar's back meaningfully. Rapina deliberately left out the fact that she had wound up killing the man who had enslaved her as a prelude to making her escape. Some things were best left unsaid. He offered his hand. "The name's Kent; before I forget. What's yours? I'm sure that my...crass companions failed to ask you that question." Rapina took Kent's hand and squeezed it. She decided she could not use her real name, so she used her nickname. "My name is Rapina," Rapina smiled. A troubled look crossed his face and he looked to the horizon. "Are you ok? I mean you look good. Great, in fact! Beautiful even! Heh. But...um...well I heard Drake and Edgar talking about...well...you know. That they ummm...raped you. I know we're supposed to be pirates and all that, but taking advantage of a half- drowned woman..." He looked at Rapina pleadingly. "It all just seemed so much more glamorous when we were kids," Kent said as he bowed his head and clutched it with his hands. Rapina stroked Kent's hair. "It's okay. My head was so bad, I could not stay conscious, let alone keep food down. I really thought I was going to die very soon, so I asked Drake to, well you know, make love to me one last time before I died. He reminded me of one of my boyfriends, I guess," Rapina smiled. "Edgar got in on Drake's shirt tails," Rapina whispered, her breath warm on Kent's ear. "As I recall, he was not very gentle, and neither of them lasted long, but somehow I think it all helped. I slept deeply for the first time since I went over the falls. My head feels better than it did, and I think my stomach has decided not to move in with my throat. You're right that being an outlaw is not so glamorous. Unfortunately, I have no choice. I'm sure I'll be hunted just as soon as the man I ran from can make up some charges to feed the law. You can't slight the gentry without getting in trouble." Rapina felt between her breasts. "Damn, I had his ring on my pendant chain and now it's gone. The ring itself doesn't matter, but I wanted to find out what noble house he was from. In town he went by a title, so I don't even know what branch of the nobility will be hunting me." Considering Rapina's words for a moment Kent sat in silence. "Well I come from a long and prestigious line of farmers," he said with dripping sarcasm, so my vast knowledge of the nobility should prove invaluable to you." He shook his head and laughed. He looked towards the horizon and sighed. "I never thought I would actually make it. Being a farmer for the rest of your life just isn't the sort of thing you look forward to. But this pirate thing has potential. I just have to get used to some of the messy stuff," Kent scratched his head and looked at Rapina. "I wouldn't worry too much about those people hunting you down. When we meet up with Red Jack you'll be in good hands." Looking around Kent got a curious look on his face. He seemed to consider something for a moment before speaking. "We may be meeting up with him sooner than I anticipated. See those small islands of rock there? Just before the river widens? Know what that means? That means we're less than a day's worth of sailing away from Red Jack's known area of operation." He smiled and looked excited. Turning to Edgar, who'd been guiding the ship, he said, "We're even closer than I thought! We could meet up with Red Jack as early as tomorrow!" Edgar looked surprised, "Really?!?! That's great! Drake will be pleased!" He looked directly at Rapina, "He'll be especially pleased to meet you, pretty." Edgar laughed and resumed his duties. "I believe we've met already. I was too rummy with headache to give him my name, but I feel I know him in some sense." Rapina smirked. She glanced at Edgar's back as he plied the boat's oars. No wonder they were making good time. The current was reasonably rapid and the endurance of the farm boys at the oars was unrelenting. Rapina wondered why they were not using the sails. Perhaps the wind was wrong. She knew nothing of sailing. Kent looked at Rapina longingly. "It's a shame but I think we're going to have to give you your clothes back. They might not cover very much, but they'll cover enough to peak Red Jack's interest. He'll definitely want to see more. And he won't be disappointed!" Moving towards the back a bit Kent rummaged around through a sack and returned with Rapina's panties and bustier. He looked at her longingly before handing her her clothes. "Put them on. I wouldn't want you to catch cold," he smiled at his little joke. Rapina took her clothes with one hand while she rubbed her head with the other. "Thanks, I wish this stupid headache would go away." Rapina left her clothes on the seat, stepped towards Kent and embraced him. She could feel his firm buns through his pants as her hands glided down his back and over his butt. Rapina whispered in Kent's ear. "Want to help me. Whatever I did last night seemed to do a great deal for my headache." Rapina did not know how many of the young men she'd wind up entertaining if she started something, but she did not want to meet the pirate captain in the same decrepit condition she had met the boys, and it appeared that she might be meeting the pirate captain soon. Kent's normally ordered and logical mind became a swirl of chaotic images when Rapina grabbed him. He had been dreaming of this moment ever since they had brought her aboard. His chance had finally come and all he could do was stand there. Her body felt hot and sensuous against his. Kent seemed a bit at a loss at first, but Rapina nibbled at his earlobe as she unbuttoned his shirt with one hand and fondled his firm rump through the canvas of his pants with the other. Soon she pealed back his shirt and pressed her hard nipples into his chest while attacking his belt with her hand. When his pants came down, Rapina grabbed his throbbing manhood and his shoulder and drew him down to her as she laid on one of the boat's benches. She moaned as she guided him into her wetness. Kent was gentle where Edgar was rough. He was innocent where Drake was not. All in all he treated Rapina with a certain tenderness. He was certainly kinder and more considerate than the other boys. He was also more intelligent and less robust than Drake or Edgar, and Rapina felt more genuine affection for him than she did for the others, though she had to admit enjoying the look of Drake's body. Thus Rapina took only the slightest fraction more energy than Kent would have given her naturally, just enough to enhance his pleasure. She did not want to tire him. On the contrary, she wanted him fit in case he wanted to bed her again. He just laid there a while in Rapina's arms. Like a child that needed comforting; that just needed to be held. Rapina held Kent close, caressing his spent passion within her as she warmed him in her embrace. "That was my first time you know," Kent said matter-of- factly. He turned to Rapina and smiled. "It was better than I ever imagined." Rapina smiled and whispered in Kent's ear. "And you are so sweet and gentle, just come to me whenever you like. You can bet I'll want you." The last vestiges of illness largely fell to Kent's energy. After they parted, Rapina washed up with water from the river. She laid out for a while before donning her clothes, claiming she wanted to even her chaotic tan. Though it was true her tan was confined mostly to her face, calves and forearms, Rapina was actually planning ahead. If the young men continued feeding her their lust, her breasts would blush with stored energy, but a tan would cover that, and added fullness to her bust would be difficult to detect if accumulated gradually. While she was laying out, she talked to Kent. Rapina found out that the boat was on a tributary of the River Augustana, and it was to the Augustana that they were bound. It was there that Red Jack preyed on the merchants and settlements of the river. Rapina had heard only a few stories about pirates, and they were somewhat contradictory. Pirates killed everyone, or killed only those who did not give up their wealth or just men, or something like that. They raped women, or they lay with men as if they were women, either out of necessity or preference. Now that Rapina thought about it. The few pirate stories she'd heard, taken together, were full of contradictions. "What sort of pirate is Captain Red Jack? Do you know any stories about him?" Rapina asked Kent and Edgar. Kent looked back at Edgar with a smirk. Edgar returned his smirk and said, "He's only THE most deadly pirate around!" "Most deadly river-pirate anyway," Kent interrupted. Edgar was momentarily put off by Kent's comment, but soon continued. "It's said that he's invincible! He's NEVER been defeated in combat! AND he's never been caught! He's a smart one he is." Edgar threw his back into the oars with renewed vigor. Obviously he was excited by the prospect of meeting the infamous Red Jack in the flesh. Kent turned to Rapina and spoke in a low tone so that Edgar wouldn't overhear. "What Edgar said is mostly correct," he began. "True Red Jack has never been captured, but he was defeated once. Or so the story goes." He glanced over his shoulder at Edgar and then continued. "He had been raiding the riverside communities for quite some time and had been very successful as well. But the people had had enough so they pooled their resources and commissioned a small fleet of riverboats and mercenaries to deal with him." Kent sat back and sighed. Apparently he was reliving the battle in his mind. "Needless to say, the mercenary fleet found Red Jack. But only after months of searching! It had been so difficult to track him down that the people were running out of money to pay the mercenaries with. Had he remained hidden a few more days the fleet would have been disbanded. Anyway the two fleets met and a bloody battle ensued. After an hour of fighting each side only had one boat remaining. The mercenary captain was a veteran naval officer and so was able to maneuver his ship so that he and his crew could board Red Jack's ship." "The pirates fought viciously, but were beaten back by the larger mercenary force. Some pirates were slain where they stood, but most of them jumped ship. The only one who didn't jump was Red Jack himself. He just stood there defiantly and challenged the mercenary captain to a duel." The mercenary captain accepted and they fought. Red Jack was outmatched but he didn't surrender. He fought on until the mercenary captain sank his sword deep into Red Jack's arm. The Mercenary captain demanded Red Jack's surrender, but Red Jack just smiled and jumped overboard." "Just then the ship was rocked by an explosion. It seems that one of Jack's crew had lit a long fuse before jumping ship. The frightened mercenaries turned to flee back to their ship only to discover it wasn't there. The pirates that jumped overboard had climbed onto the mercenary ship and cut it loose." "The mercenaries eyes widened in horror as the ship burst into flame and was torn asunder by the explosions below deck. Red Jack's crew swung around and picked him up." "So technically Red Jack was defeated even though in the end he won. He did go underground for about a year. Most likely he was recruiting more pirates and gathering together some new boats. He's been more active lately, though." Kent smiled as he imagined himself a swashbuckling pirate. "Soon we'll be a part of his crew." This he said loud enough for Edgar to hear. Edgar just smiled and nodded his head in agreement. Rapina stretched lithely, her naked body soaking up the sun. "Hmmm, what sort of raiding practices does he engage in? Does he kill everyone or does he leave them to accumulate more goods for the next time he happens by? Edgar shot an incredulous look in Rapina's direction and waved his hand as if to dismiss her. "How should I know? We haven't joined his crew yet! I tell you what...why don't you ask him yourself when we meet him...I'm sure he'd be thrilled! Ha!" He shook his head and resumed rowing. "Don't mind Edgar. He's like this with everyone. But to answer your question...I'm not sure. The gossips, rumormongers, and bards that spread Red Jack's tales don't usually concern themselves with the mundane details." Kent just shrugged and sat back. "Does he have any women on his crews?" Rapina asked. "I seem to remember a story about a woman pirate fighting side by side with Jack, but I can't remember the details..." "How does he treat women when he raids?" Rapina asked "How do you think! He rapes them, kills them, or enslaves them as he sees fit. He's a pirate after all! Damn you must have taken a hard blow to the head to ask such ridiculous questions!" Edgar shouted Clearly Kent was getting annoyed with Edgar. In particular, the way he was treating Rapina. He'd have to get over this protectiveness thing he was feeling. It was unbecoming of a pirate. "I hear pirates lay with men, especially young ones, as if they were women. Is that true?" Rapina stifled a grin as the boys reacted to what she said. Both young men stiffened and looked uncomfortable when Rapina spoke. They looked at each other. Kent was the first to speak. "That's just a rumor...most likely a lie to...uhhh...make Red Jack and his pirates seem...well...bad." "Uh...yeah." was all Edgar had to say in response. After about an hour of lying out, Rapina put her clothes on and borrowed a long tunic-style shirt from Drake to protect her from the sun. It hung down nearly to her knees. Rapina noted that there was a light but steady breeze. "Hey, how come we aren't using the sails?" She asked Kent and Edgar. Kent looked at Rapina sheepishly. "Well...er...we're not very good at using the sails yet. We almost tipped the boat over the last time we tried." "you mean YOU almost tipped the boat over genius!" Edgar spat out. "Hmmm, well the wind is not very strong today and quite steady. Maybe Kent and I could figure out how to work the main sail without tipping the boat over. I won't be much help at the oars, but It doesn't seem like I would need big muscles to use the sail if we can figure out how. It was obvious that Kent was more than a little apprehensive about using the sails again. After a long while of staring at the mast Kent turned and stared at the sails. He was building up his confidence slowly. "It'd probably be safer if we just kept rowing..." Kent began Sure it's safer not to sail, but what is Red Jack going to say when you tell him you haven't even the slightest experience with sailing? If we could figure out how to do it, at least you could say you had a little experience. It could make the difference between being laughed right off Red's ship and being taken on as novice crewmen. "She's right Kent. Ye Besides my arms could definitely use the rest." Edgar pulled in the oars and stacked them with the others. He stood up and grabbed one side of the sail. "Well quit gawking and give me a hand Kent!" Kent grabbed the other side of the sails and the three of them began hoisting the sail. It took a long time, but finally they were able to get everything up and working. Rapina delighted in new mental challenges, and this certainly was one. She'd never sailed before. Kent was the only one of the boys who had thought to spend a little time talking with and watching fishermen. He knew a little, and Rapina was not shy about picking his brain. As the day wore on, Kent was called on to row. Rapina kept fiddling with the sails and tiller, hour after hour. It was not long before she learned that tipping the boat could also be synonymous with making the boat go fast, but too much tilt brought her warning looks from Edgar. Had she not been a beautiful young woman, the boys probably would never have put up with her initial hours of ineptitude and incessant questions. Yet by the late afternoon when Drake got up, Rapina was really starting to get the hang of sailing in a gentle breeze. In spite of her needing to zigzag, or tack, according to Kent's superior knowledge of nautical terms, Rapina was making a noticeable difference in the boat's speed and progress. She had also learned how to steer the boat so as to control the degree of tilt. "Hey, look at that. Rapina pointed ahead. Ahead the boys could see the confluence of the tributary they were sailing. They were about to be on the great river Augustana. "Which way should we go?" Rapina asked. "I'm guessing West is the direction we want to go. From what I remember east leads to a whole lot of nothing." Kent said. As the sun started to set, Rapina and the boys lowered and secured the sail. She was not so brave that she wanted to try sailing in the dark, besides there were other things she could do that would be a lot more fun... Rapina and the boys spent three more days sailing the great river. They saw a few merchant barges and some fishing craft, but saw nothing like a pirate ship. Rapina had, by this time, built up a tan, and her breasts tingled contentedly with a touch of stored energy and added fullness. In the late afternoon of the third day on the Augustana, Rapina sat at the rear of the ship, tiller in hand, and pointed to the West with her free hand. "Hey, look at that." A plume of smoke too large to be a cooking fire rose above the tree line. As they neared the smoke a horrible noise became audible. It sounded like people dying. It sounded like a whole lot of people dying. The story continues in [Rapina]005 Pirates.