Ch. 5: Self-Reflections

By Schala


Figaro was southwest of Narshe, but in order to get there, they needed to go through extremes in terrain. First was a small but thick forest due south of Narshe. Then, Locke told Terra, they had to go through a desert, in the middle of which Figaro had been built.

"A desert? Why's it out there?" she asked.

Locke merely grinned in reply. "You'll find out."

"What do they do out there?"

He frowned a bit before replying. "It's a center of...technology." She noticed his hesitation, but decided not to comment on it.

They traveled mostly in the late afternoons and for part of the nights, masking their movements under cover of darkness. Locke had studied the movements of the Imperial sentries many times before, and he knew when and where to avoid them. Still, because of Terra's disappearance, the Emperor had most likely increased the patrols. He needed to be extra careful for her sake.

He watched Terra surreptitiously, stealing glances at her when she wasn't looking. She had an innocence that he found appealing. And, he was certain, that many others had taken advantage of.

Terra was a child in so many ways. She thrilled at the world around her, but could, in an instant, whip out her knife and deal with whatever monster they came upon. With a little experience and coaching, she was a valuable asset in a fight.

But the fact was Locke was a man, and he was a long time without a woman. That fact never made itself so painfully clear as when Terra slept at night. He would spend a long, long time staring down at her, wondering if he should...Then he would feel disgusted with himself for thinking that....then his mind would switch back again. After all, Terra was an attractive woman, and available...

But she wasn't the woman he wanted.

Just as her innocence attracted him, it repelled him as well. It drew some kind of line that he was hesitant to cross, no matter how much his body craved it. But the very fact that he was so unsure fed his desire. It was a crazy cycle that left him physically and mentally exhausted every night.

Maybe if she were the one who approached him first...maybe he would give in. Oh hell, he *would* give in, and quite eagerly as well. But he balked at being the one to initiate things. Locke shook his head at his thoughts. Damn.

Oh well...they would reach Figaro late the next day. Maybe he could grab a whore or two there and satisfy some of the cravings that had racked his body since Rachel died.

It was a rather exciting time for Terra. As they traveled further away from the eternally gloomy, smoky town of Narshe, she began feeling better. Maybe it was the fresh air. She took a deep breath and filled her lungs, then let it out slowly. Ahh...the smell of nature, of freedom.

But she was always brought back down from the clouds whenever she saw Locke's serious face. He looked so intent sometimes it was frightening. And she saw him glance at her several times. Terra wondered what he was thinking about her. She'd sensed so many emotions that were impossible to understand.

Terra winced a bit as she accidentally stumbled into a low-hanging tree branch. They had left the forest yesterday and were now keeping to the edge of the mountains. Trees were scarcer now, and when they found one, what did she do but hit a branch. Great, she thought.

She hugged herself. Her chest still hurt quite a bit. So did her thighs and ass. God, just what had those men done to make her body so painful? Terra recalled some of it, but it had happened so fast that her mind was still stunned.

What she remembered most was the strange pleasure she'd gotten from it. She'd actually enjoyed being flung on her back and made to suck on the men. Just thinking about it made her feel wet. She wondered if it was normal to feel that way. Well, normal or not, whenever she thought about it, she got a tingly sensation all over her body and she couldn't help but grin.

All the men she'd come into brief contact with so far had done something like that to her. Even Arvis, even though he was a much older man. It gave her a secret thrill, and really, she wanted more.

But there was something missing from those encounters, something she couldn't quite define...And without it, she wasn't completely satisfied.

And here was Locke, the only man who refused to touch her in that way. Every night just before she went to sleep, Terra wondered if she appealed to him at all. She cast her mind back to the time of their meeting in the mines. There had been something between them, something that had flashed and then been subdued. What had it been?

She shook her head. Locke was a curious one. He promised to protect her, and he was keeping his word. But at the same time, she felt a muted anger, tension, and urgency within him. What was driving him?

Terra shrugged. They'd be reaching Figaro tomorrow, so he told her. Once there, she assumed he'd hand her over to whoever would next be in charge of her. Where would she go from there? Why was she in this situation in the first place? She hoped she'd get some answers about her existence, even as the questions about her sexual being were now being explored.



Ch. 6: Figaro Fun

Return to the trees in the Lemon Grove

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This lemon last tasted by the Grovekeeper on Aug. 30, 2001
All chapters (c) Schala 1999