Skyworld Act 3 by Gideon Kalve Jarvis

Skyworld Act 3

Gideon Kalve Jarvis, Anal, Avian, BDSM, Canine, Cobra, Deer, Doe, Dog, Elk, F/F, Fantasy, Fox, Goat, Hippo, Hippopotamus, M/F, M/M, Magic, Mink, Mustelid, NC, Oral, Otter, Pig, Raccoon, Reptile, Rhino, Romance, Scalie, Skunk, Snake, Stag, Steampunk, Tiger, Vaginal, Virgin, Vixen, Wolf, albatross, pirates

#3 of Skyworld

Pressing forward, Cika and Kanda Har find love growing deeper, and adventure in each passing day as they sail the high skies. Behind them, even following, the pirates and the dark powers that guide them creep ever closer, determined to claim the treasure, the map to which Kanda Har keeps hidden in his steamborg arm.

Skyworld

Act 3

By Gideon Kalve Jarvis and SilverFox

"Please," whimpered the boy softly, the furry mask around his brown eyes making them seem even larger as he watched the vermilion-dyed vixen slowly lace up her boot. It wasn't quite clear what the red pandaboy was begging Captain Talia Redcoat to do...or not to do, as the case may be. In the end, though, it really didn't matter what he wanted: she would do with him as she pleased, and make no mistake.

Tully was dangling from the ceiling by his wrists, bound above his head, the other end of the soft rope looped through an eyebolt, while his legs were splayed apart, ankles similarly fastened by ropes leading to eyebolts set into the floor. Somewhere along the short route to this especially exposed position, poor Tully had also lost all his clothes, which now lay strewn carelessly around the cabin, while Talia's own clothes were neatly folded and resting on her desk. The bed, of course, was kept clear for the time being, as Talia expected to be making use of it in the near future. Presently, all she was wearing were her long black boots, and as she glanced over her shoulder from her bent-over position while finishing the task of re-lacing her footgear, she smirked as she saw Tully's pleasant dark erection. Oh, it wasn't a tool of legendary proportions by any means, but the boy's brown-skinned shaft would more than suffice for Talia's purposes; it wasn't like he'd have it inside of her that long or that often anyway. Her smirk turning playful, Talia flicked her long, bushy foxtail up and around, exposing everything to the wide-eyed teenager, who gaped, his pleading voice immediately dying into a darling little whimper as his slender shaft throbbed in obvious appreciation for what he saw.

Talia had to admit: she liked that whimper. Actually, she liked everything about this red panda, not least of which how easy it had been to overpower him and then to tie him up. Surely the boy had thought of himself as a man - a foolish overestimation in the best of times - but compared to Talia, who, for all her lithe, supple build, had arm-wrestled men many times her size, and won more times than not, he hadn't stood a chance. No, this sleek little streetboy was more accustomed to a life with too much running and too little food to be able to resist her for more than a matter of moments. Hmm, he did have a very nice bottom, though.

"What are you going to do to me?" Tully got out breathlessly as Talia rose and turned to face him, hands on hips, every inch the pirate queen even while naked (some would say especially while naked). His penis throbbed again as she stepped closer to him, her high boots making a pleasantly solid, commanding sound on the wooden floorboards with each step. Once again his voice faded into an adorable whimper as the red-painted vixen teased the manicured claws of one long-fingered hand down his chest, teasing their very tips against his trim, taut tummy, enjoying the softness of his short-but-thick fur. Tully opened his mouth again, perhaps to ask some other inane question, but Talia easily silenced him with a kiss, slow and expert, practiced extensive over the course of her life to near perfection. His eyes rolled back into his head as Talia stroked her skilled hands over his body, and then widened as she grabbed his tight, firm bottom and squeezed, her fingertips stroking that extra-sensitive little spot right beneath the tail which Kanda Har had not long ago shown Cika could bring such pleasant sensations.

Breathless, Tully hung limply in his bonds as Talia broke the kiss and stepped away. Just as easily as she'd left him drained, Talia smiled in that wickedly sly-and-sexy way that only foxes have as she reached forward, and made his entire body arch as she wrapped her fingers around his shaft, giving the slim brown-skinned penis a nice squeeze, just enough to keep his attention, and then some.

"You were going to tell me everything you know about the routes of the fishing boat used by that pretty albatross girl, Windspray," said Talia with a casual seductiveness as she began to stroke the helpless red panda's cock with one hand, the other tenderly caressing his soft-furred balls as she stepped fully behind him, pressing her pleasant-sized breasts against the back of his head, letting him sink into the pillowy softness between them.

He told her everything. The faster he talked, the faster Talia stroked, nodding slightly at his words as she took it all in, her memory for details like this very nearly photographic, especially when punctuated with the spark of sex. Bending a little, she made Tully almost scream when she bit down and then tenderly licked one delicate nipple, hidden beneath his fur until an upstroke of her muzzle exposed it. His words came faster, turning almost incoherent as the skilled, powerful vixen gyrated around his body, much like an exotic dancer would use a pole, her lips brushing at the short, thick fur of his neck, his chest, his belly, before she guided his plump glans into her muzzle, first kissing and then nibbling on the tip before she easily took him right to the roots, looking up at him with her dazzling red eyes.

Of course Tully couldn't resist. Watching, rapt, as the dominating woman knelt before him, her head bobbing slowly forward and back, leaving his length glistening and so very sensitive in those moments when it was visible, he quickly discovered that, when he stopped talking, Talia stopped sucking, and this was all the encouragement he needed to spill everything he could think of, even things that didn't seem relevant. Soon Talia was listening, rapt, as Tully told her about the sweet piece of mink he'd tapped, Cika by name - he'd popped her cherry, actually, and made that tight little hottie squeak pretty loud when he'd stuck it in her - and how her new boyfriend, this big rhino, had been the cause of Tully's departure from Windspray's crew. Talia admitted readily to herself that she would deeply enjoy making her former captain watch as she ravished such an obviously precious little cutie as this Cika sounded like she'd be. She'd have the treacherous Kanda Har tied up right next to the bed while she lovingly caressed the sweet little minkling's tender pink parts, and then buried her muzzle eagerly into tasty pink cunny until the wriggly little weaselkin squeaked, again and again and again. Of course, Kanda Har would be rock-hard with arousal, seeing two femmes with whom he'd shared his bed writhing together before him. It amused the vixen to no end picturing the look on both Kanda Har's and this sweet little morsel, Cika's, faces when she would reach over and stroke the burly rhino to completion, making sure to squirt as much of his copious orgasm, which she remembered with such fondness, all over the lovely naked body of his lover.

It was with this thought that Talia fingered herself to a small, shuddering orgasm, only seconds later tasting the spurt of Tully's own orgasm. Mmm, tasty, certainly, as youthful spunk tended to be, but just not as much of it as the vixen would have liked. Still, quality over quantity, and, after all, the boy was young: there would certainly be more where that came from.

"I...I told you everything," Tully gasped out as he dangled, limp once more, both in body and also in cock, his eyes following the lithe vixen as she rose and walked toward her dresser. "Where Windspray is going, who's on her ship...everything. I don't know anything else to tell you."

Those brown eyes widened, Tully's youthful shaft starting to stir, as Talia bent over once more, this time to rummage in one of her drawers, her tail idly flicking to the side, letting him have another very pleasant view of the captain's pearly pink parts. Tully's mouth dropped open in shock, however, when he saw what Talia pulled out of the drawer: a rather sizable strap-on dildo!

"No," whimpered the helpless boy as she struggled, all in vain, against the cunning knotwork of his captor and captain. "Please, not that! Please..."

With a girlish giggle, Talia deftly slipped a ball gag into little Tully's mouth and cinched it behind his back, before she took her time, and carefully slid the strap-on into place, shuddering a little as she popped the shorter end into her achingly juicy cunny, which flexed and tensed with her eagerness. Tully was almost in tears as Talia walked around him, stroking his tail upward with one hand even as she stroked a copious amount of lubrication onto the business end of the strap-on with the other.

"Don't worry, baby," she cooed sweetly in his ear as she nudged the tip of the strap-on against the red panda's bottom. "I'll be gentle."

Tully tried to spit the gag from between his teeth, to scream out at what his new Captain was doing and planning. Pressure increased against the tight sphincter of his tailhole, something that had, until this moment, been inviolate. Real men didn't take others like this! Real men gave, like he had Cika, bursting her little hymen with one, brutal thrust, the minkling's muffled squeak of surprise and pain having filled him with a burning desire that had made him feel powerful!

Now, though, Tully felt anything but manly and powerful and sobbed, sniffing indelicately as the force being directed against his tailhole increased. He tried to struggle, to resist, but the ties and ropes that held him immobile and in such a submissive position were too strong, too well thought out, too expertly wrapped around his wrists and ankles.

The red panda fought to keep his body clenched, to deny the slow, inexorable penetration as tears of frustration flowed into the dark fur around his eyes. He fought valiantly even while he knew that it was only a matter of time before he lost this particular battle. Not only was Captain Talia Redcoat able to wait, the firmness of the dildo something that would never diminish, it was as if the red panda's struggling only enflamed her even more.

Just before the last erg of resistance failed and his body succumbed, the boy looked up, noticing for the first time the blue hued parrotgirl that served their Captain watched enthralled from a perch like bench in the lavish accommodations of the cabin, her eyes wide and beak parted as her silk swathed chest heaved in barely contained excitement. Tully felt his ears redden with almost painful embarrassment as the bird grew even more enthusiastic with every passing moment, and with more tears following, realized that the girl was rapidly stroking herself as she avidly watched the play unfolding before her at the red panda's expense.

Then with a little thrust, in truth not one that was as savage as what he'd taken Cika's cherry with, though it felt like it, Talia Redcoat entered the boy's backside with a cooing sigh, sinking slowly into Tully's virgin ass so that the warm firmness of her lower belly was pressed hard against his cheeks.

"It's always such a thrill to take another's virginity, isn't it, Tully? My sweet boy...my sweet, sweet boy."

The vixen ran her fingers through the lad's fur, gyrating slowly so that the imitation phallus stirred deep within the youth's body even as the other portion stirred in her, so deep, the pressure so delectable.

"There is a feeling of power, isn't there?" Talia inquired as her paws slipped to the narrow hips of her latest acquisition, petting his soft fur before grasping Tully tightly before rolling her hips, the transfer of sensations to her own slick, hot cunny making the fox truly enjoy what she was doing. The muffled sobbing that made it past the ball gag only increased her ardor and Talia threw her head back, her eyes closed as she rode and dominated the little red panda. While the vixen reveled in her sex, there were times she wished she were male, to take another...anyone she pleased, really, to mount and dominate before filling them with her cum. Then again, that was just one of the many things that Talia desired, but she didn't give voice to the others.

Ever.

"You see, my lovely Tully," the fox whispered as she stroked more deeply, with more force, "you, like everyone on this ship, are mine and mine alone. Mine to do with as I wish, when I wish, and how I wish." She leaned over his back and gave a slightly more vigorous thrust with the strap on. "Do you understand?"

Despite the humiliation, Tully nodded. He tried to answer vocally, but the only sounds were pitiful whimpers that punctuated every stroke of the toy that filled him. What was worse than the humiliation though was the...pleasure.

That was the worst of this moment. Tully liked it. As soon as he realized that, he felt his new Captain's paw slip from the grip it had to his waist and slither over his belly, traveling lower with excruciating slowness. When her fingers closed around his adolescent cock, he whimpered again, but not from shame.

"Why Tully!" Talia exulted mockingly with a slight deeper tone of satisfaction in her voice. "I think you like this. I think you're enjoying this." The fox increased her pace, adding a little bit of a tug to his hard little shaft. "Are you enjoying this?"

The red panda squeezed his eyes even more tightly as he nodded reluctantly, not only the words of his Captain in his ears, but also the soft sounds of the parrotgirl, opening his eyes just enough to see her as she shivered through a little orgasm.

Talia took her other paw away from his flank, though she still pistoned in and out of the red panda with methodical regularity. "And are you mine, Tully?" the vixen asked as she slipped her fingers into his hair, pulling his head back so she could see in one eye.

The boy nodded and whimpered, even as his body betrayed him and he pushed back harder on the dildo.

It seemed as if the nod was all it took, the final component of some kind of carnal alchemy that Talia sought, and as he gave in to her, his Captain's mouth opened in silent orgasm that she rode with a slight tremble that translated into Tully's body through the phallus that filled him so completely. It brought him near the brink, but before he could enjoy blessed release, the fox stood and withdrew, none too gently.

Talia Redcoat, terror of the skies, stepped past the boy, untying the straps of her toy and letting it fall to the floor of her cabin before crawling onto her bed, almost slithering across the wine red silk coverings and lounging on her side. She rested her chin on one paw while looking at Tully with her fiery eyes. For his part, the red panda was in a state of near frenzy, on the brink of cumming, the pressure in his young balls boiling with the feeling that he would explode if he wasn't allowed the release he craved.

"So, what shall I do with you now?" Talia inquired with the hint of a smile. "I have all of the information in your cute little head so there's no need to, hmm," she giggled softly, "pump you for information." Looking as if she were deep in thought, she gestured to the parrot as she stretched out on her tummy. "Blue, would you kindly summon Davios." It might have sounded like a request, but was delivered with all of the authority that she had gathered over the years.

The one that the parrotgirl, apparently named Blue, was supposed to get must have been waiting right outside the door. When Tully looked up he saw a wolf with deep grey, rich, fur, and a handsomeness that even the boy acknowledged.

The wolf was precisely the kind of individual that Tully hated, seeing the pirate as everything he wasn't and knew it. The wolf was tall, muscular, handsome to the point of almost being beautiful, but in a very masculine way. He was dressed in tight breeches and high, cuffed leather boots, his broad chest exposed by the open front of a very expensive looking silk shirt with ruffled collar in almost luminous white.

"Ah, Davios. I'd like you to meet my new cabin boy, Tully," Talia crooned happily. She even sighed as Blue climbed up onto the bed and began to massage her shoulders without the vixen's prompting. "He's a tasty little treat, don't you think?"

Davios was a very pragmatic individual, having plied the skies long enough to learn that he didn't care where his entertainment came from, or if it was maid, wench, or even the Captain's newest boy-toy. His predilections were wide and varied, and he was more than happy to apply his skills to anyone his Captain gave him. "A little thin, but fetching," the wolf agreed in a deep, voice.

"He says he belongs to me," Talia said as the massage she received became a little more intimate with the parrotfemme kneading the muscles of her rump and upper thighs. "But we both know how...impetuous the young can be. I wish to be sure. Besides, you know how I do so love to see you work." The vixen stretched her arm out and flipped an hourglass that was mounted into a polished brass base. "Show me what you can do within the space of an hour." Talia laughed throatily. "And make it...entertaining."

Davios began to slip the shirt he wore over his head. "As ever, it is my pleasure to serve my Captain," the wolf said with a bow before turning to Tully. "Heave to, lad, and prepare to be boarded," he told the red panda with a wide, hard grin.

Tully gulped with the look he received, hard, cold, but with an underlying hunger that sent a shiver through him, though the boy couldn't tell if his reaction was from fear, or anticipation. He watched, his breath hitching in his chest as the wolf finished disrobing, the tight trousers coming off far more easily than it seemed they should.

Davios didn't wear any underclothes, and no sooner was the dark grey wolf completely nude than Tully's eyes crossed at the mass of the newcomer's enormous cock in front of him. The dark red, tapered organ seemed to be only inches from his face and the deep, musky smell of a virile and aroused male filled his black nose. It was a strangely intriguing smell, and for the first time in his life Tully was curious as to what another male would taste like even as he was repulsed by the thought of men pleasuring men.

When the wolf reached behind the boy to release the ball gag, the hot shaft brushed against his cheek and the only thing that Tully could do was stay still as he was torn between wanting to put distance between him and the well hung wolf and nuzzling the deep red cock. Then the gag came out and Tully swallowed, licking the saliva from his furry lips.

"N-no..." the boy whispered as Davios lifted his head up with a finger under his chin.

Again there was that almost predatory smile, the expression more fitting for a skyshark before it struck. "Lad, there are two ways this can go," Davios said in an oddly soft voice. "You can either do as I tell you, and accept that you belong to the Captain, or you can fight, and the end will still be the same. It really makes no difference to me. You see, I'm hers as well, just as you are."

The wolf all but petted the boy's head in a curiously tender manner.

"So, this can be pleasurable, and you'll learn to do as your told," Davios whispered. "Or it will not be pleasurable," he said and grabbed the youth's hair and tilting Tully's head even further up so that the tip of the huge wolf cock rested on the closed mouth of the red panda. "Either way, you will do what you are told. Understand?"

Tully nodded slowly, his dark brown eyes wide.

"That's a good lad," the wolf husked. "Now, open."

Reluctantly Tully opened his mouth, knowing what was going to happen and closed his eyes with a small sound escaping his throat as the cock slid past his lips and over his tongue, the flavor filling both taste and smell and hot. The red panda took the wolf all the way to his bulging knot, then opened up even further to accept that.

"Ahhh. Now there's a good lad," Davios said approvingly, his hips twitching forward as the boy took all of his length down before gagging slightly. "Now, there's one saying that is true for any sailor that plies the high skies, young Tully," the wolf said as he began to thrust slowly in and out of the boy's muzzle with wet, sucking sounds, "and that, my boy, is any port in a storm."

Talia was worked into a near froth. She had watched Davios break the boy's will well within the allotted time. Screams gave way to moans, moans to whimpers, and whimpers to begging. It wasn't the wolf the boy pleaded with, but the vixen herself. Time and again she denied the red panda the release he needed until his eyes rolled madly while Davios only grinned.

Tully, doing whatever was asked, whether begging to be mounted, fellatio or any of a hundred other things over and over, was kept on edge until he was ready to sell his soul for relief. It was then that Talia Redcoat rose from her bed, just as the last grain of sand fell from the narrowed waist of the hourglass, Davios not having disappointed her in the slightest in either performance nor the time constraint.

"Oh, Tully," the vixen said with a wicked grin, stepping forward to caress the panting teenager. "Now do you see? I own you, dear boy. Just like any pretty thing in my cabin. I own you and you serve me, don't you?"

The red panda nodded weakly, still panting. "I...will always...be yours...Cap'n..."

With a curt nod of her head, Davios released the bindings, the boy all but collapsing on the wooden floor of the cabin. "Show me that you're mine," the vixen crooned. "Prove it to me by cleaning my boots."

Without hesitating in the slightest, Tully began to lick the leather of his Captain's boots clean, even as his body trembled and spasmed at finally being released from the bonds that had held him so thoroughly.

"And the floor. Truly you need to learn some more discipline. You have made such a mess on the floor between your earlier pleasure and what Davios enjoyed. While it was fun to observe, I like my cabin to stay clean and neat."

Again without hesitation Tully began to lap at the puddle of cum on the planking, not caring that it was his and another's, actually relishing the taste and wishing he had leave to add to it.

"Now here," Talia said as she spread her stance, exposing her dripping slit to the boy. "Clean it well."

There was only the slightest hesitation, most from Tully's surprise that his Captain would allow him to touch her thusly. He was diligent in his efforts, all but purring happily when he made the vixen cum, his mouth filling with her sweet nectar as he lapped as every delicate fold, every hidden nook of the fox's quim, waiting until Talia was satisfied before sitting back on the floor submissively.

Talia was more than pleased, her eyes darting to Davios, the wolf smirking cruelly, his arms crossed as he lounged against one of the beams, still gloriously nude. "Blue. I think that Tully needs proper clothing as my new cabin boy. What do you have available?"

The parrotgirl was already waiting with fabric in a burnt orange with simple geometric designs on the edges in red and yellow. The bird helped Tully stand and wrapped him in the clothing, though not until she was done did the red panda realize that it was a female's sarong and matching top. He almost said something, but stopped, the conditioning already starting to work. If his beloved Captain wished him to dress like a girl, then so be it.

"Mmmmm! Very good choice, Blue!" the vixen said while her other thrall only ducked her head to the side with the praise. "There's something missing, though," Talia said with a slight frown before snapping her fingers. Turning to a small chest on her map table, the fox pulled something out then stepped up and fixed a copper collar with topaz and dark amber gems about Tully's neck. "This is to let others know that you are mine." She walked daintily around her new toy, teasing his fur with one long finger, her boots clicking on the decking. "Your name won't do, though. 'Tully' is the name for a beggar and thief, and to be truthful, sounds too much like my name. I can't have that, now can I?

"I think I shall give you a new name. But what to choose? It must be fitting of your new...status. Ah, yes. I think I'll call you...Amber. It fits the color of your fur and like the little gems in the collar you now have on; you're a pretty little thing that belongs to me."

A shiver of pleasure ran through the boy. She was right, his old name would never do. "Whatever my Captain wants," the newly named Amber panted sycophantically.

"Yes. You are learning, aren't you?" Talia asked rhetorically before turning to the birdgirl. "Take Amber down below so that he may become acquainted with the rest of the crew. Well, except Dawson. I'm not happy with him at the moment. He's assumed far too much responsibility. Initiative is all well and good, but not foolish bravado. And not Tam, either. That tiger still needs to prove himself. I think Peels would be a wonderful place to start, then come right back here."

"Yes, Captain!" Blue agreed, speaking for the first time that the red panda had heard. The parrot led the boy out of the cabin even as Davios began to slowly walk to the Captain's bed.

It was now the fifth day out, and the attitude onboard the little fishing vessel had grown quite relaxed, in quite a number of ways. Perhaps the most notable of these ways was Windspray's seemingly utter disregard for nudity taboos when she was properly away from the rigid structure of civilization. Cika's first introduction to this fact about the tall, broad-winged albatross girl came two mornings ago, when she stepped out on deck to do some stretches.

The little mink wasn't quite as sore that morning as she'd been when she'd first started making love to Kanda Har, having grown somewhat accustomed to the rhino male's girth, and having learned some interesting exercises from Saber that were perfect not only for letting her stay nice and tight (and she wanted to stay as tight as she could, to give Kanda Har as much pleasure as possible), but also for helping her to handle that immense grey cock of her lover's a little more easily. She'd also taken to doing lots of stretching almost as soon as she woke up, which Cika found helped her to stay limber in a great many ways, and even helped her increase her speed, which was, after all, her greatest asset, when she did her combat training with Kanda Har and Saber.

It was as Cika was sitting down on the deck, stretching out first one leg and then the other, pushing until she felt the pull on her hamstrings for a count of thirty before shifting to the other one, that she happened to glance up, and couldn't help but blink as she saw the white-feathered bird crouched not too far away, just to the side of the ship's bow, as naked as the proverbial jaybird. Windspray was looking out on the endless skies, her feathers almost luminescent in the pink-and-purple-and-gold of the dawn, a slight smile curling at the corners of her bright yellow beak, her expression and manners those of one who is really and truly happy. Before Cika could think of what to do in this circumstance, if anything at all, the young albatross femme pushed herself lightly from the gunwale and down, completely out of sight.

For a moment Cika forgot that Windspray had wings - after all, she'd just seen the ship's captain leap off into the endless void! - and leapt up, racing to the bow. An instant later, however, her fears quieted as she saw the beautiful white feathers of Windspray rise up above the gunwale, outstretched to catch the morning air, the dawn's light making her white feathers almost blinding in their brilliance. After her recent experiences with the omnisexual Saber, Cika had begun to see her fellow females in a slightly different light than before, and found, as Windspray drifted easily alongside her little fishing clipper, that she was admiring the sleek, supple body of the beautiful young bird, the snowy white of her feathers just making each sleek curve and line all the more easy on the eyes. Windspray wasn't a voluptuous girl by any stretch, certainly nothing like the curvaceous hippogirl Candi, or the very womanly Saber. She was closer to Cika in her slim build, but taller, and with a more defined tone to her muscles. This made Windspray look a bit lanky, even tomboyish at times, but that was only on the ground. In the air, she was a creature of pure beauty, and looking down at her as she skimmed along just above the clouds, Cika could almost feel the thrill of flight herself, as though it were her and not Windspray soaring through the air with such apparent ease.

When Windspray finally settled back on board, Cika blinked again, realizing what she'd forgotten: that the beautiful white bird was still wearing nothing more than when she'd hatched. Blushing deeply, Cika hastily averted her eyes, even as she heard the small claws at the tips of Windspray's webbed feet click softly on the deck.

"Is there something wrong, Cika?" asked Windspray, resting a gentle hand on the soft-furred mink's shoulder. "You look bothered by something."

"Um," Cika stammered at first. "It's nothing really..."

"Is it because I'm not wearing clothes?" Windspray asked, her head cocked slightly to the side. Cika gave a shy nod in response, which just made Windspray smile and bend forward to hug Cika reassuringly in her great white wings. "It's all right - Holly was shocked the first time she saw me naked on deck, and Candi always blushes, even though she's the first person to have joined my little crew. Saber...well, Saber is Saber." She gently released Cika, who now dared to look up at the other girl's pretty face. "My people don't usually wear any clothes at all; there's just no need where we live, not when our feathers keep us plenty warm and dry. I only wear clothes when we're close to major lanes of traffic." Windspray's expression turned wry. "We're not going anywhere near those for a while, I think."

A realization struck Cika at these words.

"Kanda Har's shown you where we're going, then?" she asked, doing her best to push down the slight pang of disappointment this realization brought. After all, she'd thought the map Kanda Har carried was a special secret that only they two held between them.

"He told me," answered Windspray with a shrug. "All I really needed was a general course heading, anyway." The albatross turned, resting her elbows on the gunwale as she looked out toward the horizon beyond the bow. "It's not like the Tinthian Archipelago is hard to find...at least, not when it wants you to find it." Then, quite suddenly, she turned her head to look at Cika over her shoulder, and gave a light titter. "It's okay - I don't mind if you look at my butt."

As a point of fact, Cika had been doing her level best not_to look at Windspray's butt. But, well...it was _right there, just sort of stuck out, the tailfeathers lifted, exposing the snug pink places beneath. Blushing as she was caught, Cika gave Windspray a sheepishly apologetic look. The albatross girl, however, just wiggled her smooth-feathered tushie and then giggled.

"I told you, I'm used to going naked," Windspray continued talking as she turned her attention back to the horizon. "If you like someone's body, it's natural to look at that person." She gave Cika a teasing wink over her shoulder then. "Just as long as you don't go touching that way without permission," she added. "That's not okay. But looks," she shrugged again, smiling out at the sunrise, "looks don't hurt anybody. Actually, I'm flattered that you'd want to look at me." Those dark eyes fell, as did Windspray's beak. "Nobody back home ever looks at me," she admitted.

That admission, the look of such utter vulnerability from the beautiful white bird...Cika couldn't really help herself. Windspray looked up in some surprise as Cika now became the one to rest a gentle hand on the other girl's shoulder. As Windspray half-turned, the touch turned into an embrace, as the little mink wrapped her arms around the albatross' middle, hugging her tightly. Windspray smiled down at Cika, and then hugged her back, those great white wings enfolding the smaller girl like a down comforter.

Of course, that had been on the third day. This was the fifth, and after going through a drenching rain the night before that had left pretty much the entire ship and all its contents soaked (Kanda Har had been forced to clean and oil his parts extensively after that mess), Cika decided that she didn't care much for wearing sopping wet clothes. So it was that she stepped out onto the deck wearing nothing more than what she'd been born wearing...which is to say, not a stitch.

Kanda Har, seated on a barrel filled to the brim with rainwater, was idly double-checking the inner workings of his arm, to ensure the seals on the more delicate parts had kept out the damp, when he glanced up...and then just stared.

"Huh," he said, his eyebrows raised comically high in his surprise. "Cika, did you know that you're naked?"

"Oh, is that it?" Cika answered back as she sashayed over to the big grey rhino. "I _thought_it was a little breezy out here today." Then she giggled as she stood on tip-toes and kissed the blushing male's nose, just below his horn. "It's not like you're wearing much more," she reminded Kanda Har with a smug smirk.

This was true, of course. Kanda Har, suffering from the same trouble as the rest of the crew, had left most of his clothing hanging around the place to dry. Thusly, he was dressed only in a rather abbreviated undercloth, something he'd had to borrow from Saber's collections of various items gathered from her many past lovers, since he didn't generally bother with them himself - too much trouble to add to the washing when you were aboard ship. But then, Kanda Har had usually found himself among majority-male crews in the past. In his present circumstances, he was the one in the minority, and he hadn't really quite felt proper walking around in nothing at all.

Apparently, Kanda Har was the only one who felt that way, as not too long after he began to work with Cika to start her morning training, Holly stepped up onto the deck. The pretty doe was apparently not in the least perturbed that the creamy fur of her underbelly and undertail, normally hidden from view by her sarong, leaving only her darker brown fur on her arms and legs visible, was completely exposed, her small and cutely pink nipples standing firmly erect in the chill of the morning air.

"Good morning Cika, Kanda Har," she called over with a wave, which Cika easily returned, though Kanda Har was a bit slower to do so, swallowing as he watched the sway of the doe's supple rump as she walked toward the nets dangling over the side, to check them for the night's catch.

"Hey," said Cika as she watched Kanda Har's expression as he hastily tore his eyes, real and mechanical, away from that honestly mesmerizing bottom (and, Cika had to admit, Holly had the cutest buns she'd seen in a long while on another girl) to glance guiltily at Cika, "it's okay." The little mink felt a bit silly when she patted her beau's arm - her comforting a big guy like him, someone almost three times her age, was bordering the ridiculous - but it seemed to make Kanda Har's expression brighten a little, so she pressed on. "I mean, we're going to have to share the ship together, so it's natural that we get used to being, well, comfortable around each other." And then her own eyes strayed to Holly's shapely backside as the sexy doe bent over to pull in part of the net. She glanced at Kanda Har, whose eyes had been occupied with the same activity, and he glanced at her...and then they both broke into giggles. Well...Cika giggled. Kanda Har, being the manly male that he was, chortled, in a very masculine, totally non-giggling sort of way. "Well, she does have a cute butt," Cika said by way of explanation, to which Kanda Har responded by wrapping his good arm around her waist and kissing her full on the mouth.

"Mmm," he sighed happily as they parted, then glanced over toward Holly again, this time with a more serious expression. "We should help her over there," he said, gently lowering Cika to the deck. "The net looks pretty heavy."

"Yeah," Cika agreed, and the two put a temporary pause to training to do some of the honest work that made up the daily routine on board the little fishing clipper. While they were working, though, Cika glanced over at the burly-looking male she'd grown to love, and who had grown to love her. "Kanda Har?" she queried, getting him to turn his metal eye in her direction. "How far are we from...you know?"

Kanda Har's eyes swept the horizon for a moment before the clockwork orb spun back toward Cika's face.

"Another week at this pace," he responded with a slight shrug before winding in the winch controlling the fishing nets, using his metal arm for its additional strength, traction, and inability to suffer rope burns. "We'll likely have to stop off somewhere for a quick resupply in a few days, but after that, the trip's not far at all, when you know where you're going." His head turned slightly toward where Windspray was perched on the tip of the bow. "Windspray has a natural understanding of this sort of thing," he admitted. "I think it's from whatever magic her island people practice. Some people call it all superstition, but," he shrugged, and let the thought end there.

Cika nodded at this, her small hands helping on one side of Kanda Har, while Holly's were busy on the other side, tugging in the stray strands of net. She was just about to say something more when, quite abruptly, she felt a familiar hand on her bottom, while a purple-scaled hand reached over her shoulder to catch the strands she very nearly lost in her momentary shock.

"Well," said Saber with a fangy grin, "I must say I like your fashion sense, Cika."

At that same time, perhaps a day's journey behind Windspray's little clipper, the Bloodcrow made its serene way through the skies, cutting the clouds in its wake. Talia Redcoat, captain of that grand vessel after the death of one captain and the retirement of another and her own obvious talents in leading the crew who chose to throw in their lot with that well-favored brotherhood who rode the skies in its berth, stood at the helm, gripping the wheel with masterful control. After the storm of the previous night, the red dye in her fur had started to run a bit, leaving much of her albino white fur exposed, at least where it wasn't covered by her green greatcoat, soft leather breeches, and red frilled vest. Much of her crew were belowdecks at that time, enjoying the entertainment provided in the galley.

The entertainment in question, of course, was Amber. The red panda had quickly taken to his duties as cabin boy - or, rather, cabin girl- of the Bloodcrow, and the crew had quickly taken to him. Less than half an hour ago, Talia had checked on the amusement belowdecks, just to ensure there weren't any slackers there who were supposed to be on duty at the time, and found herself pleased to see that Amber was busily at work taking Hans' mongrel cock to the hilt in one end, and Dawson's corkscrew cock to the hilt in the other. It was the first day that Talia had decided to allow the black-and-white pig the privilege of making use of her newest toy, and the handsome pig had been eagerly making use of every free moment to take full advantage of his captain's largess. Judging from the grateful looks he'd given her before Talia had returned to the helm, he'd learned his lesson, or at least thought he had. Only time would tell on that count, of course. Hans, for his part, being a typical sea dog of indeterminate breed (though he looked somewhere between a golden retriever and some sort of terrier), was quite happy to get any play he could, and Amber's muzzle, which had grown rather skilled over the last five days, was as fine a place to bury his bone as any.

One person who was most definitely not allowed access to the cabin girl was Tam, the former Viscount Tammany. "Former," because his title didn't really matter too much when he was out on the open skies, far from his father's influence and money. No, instead of having fun below, the strong young tiger was busily working in the ratlines with the rat brothers, Rogan and Tosh. Though his distaste for the muscular Rogan and his fat brother Tosh was obvious, after Talia had him lashed across his naked back and bottom, leaving stripes on his stripes, red-on-black, on their second day out for having too much attitude, Tam had learned to curb his tongue and just to do his best as learning the seaman's trade. For their part, Rogan didn't really care much one way or the other about most things, being both stoic and laconic, but Tosh simply loved to talk, and if he had the good excuse of teaching a young man the ways of the skies, all the better.

As for the course Talia followed, she glanced with some distaste toward the heavily-cloaked figure standing out of the direct sunlight, in the lee of the poop deck. Frere Vermis' reedy whispered voice, which was almost a piping sound when he grew more animated, always set Talia on edge. There was something wrong about the hooded holy man, something strange and unnatural that neither the vixen nor her crew liked one bit; everything about the heavy-cloaked brother was off, right down to the way his body seemed to be constantly moving beneath his robes even when he was standing still. Talia wasn't even sure if Frere Vermis was really male, despite the use of the religious title, but she found herself deeply hoping that he wasn't a female: somehow that seemed even more horrific.

Why did Talia trust the word of Frere Vermis? He was the one who'd set her onto her own former captain's tail, hunting Kanda Har Trask like she was an arm of the law itself. He was also now the one who guided her navigation, now that they'd just barely passed beyond the normal skyfishing grounds of Windspray's craft, and hence beyond the point where Amber (formerly Tully) could help her. Truthfully, Talia wasn't completely sure. The hooded figure had approached her in her favorite drinking spot, his strange gait immediately drawing her attention, if the softly glowing eyes beneath the folds of his hood hadn't. He'd shown her gold and jewels, given them to her outright, telling her that there was that and more, stored up by the old crow, Captain Craw, and then handed down to Captain Trask, hidden away when, by all rights, the treasure should have been divvied up properly among the rest of the crew, like all booty. Then he'd pulled out a map, a strange orb unlike anything Talia Redcoat had ever seen in her life, an orb which expanded in the thick-gloved hand of the Frere, showing the most detailed set of navigational directions the vixen had ever seen anywhere. Despite herself, looking at that orb, Talia found herself believing Frere Vermis. He'd said that the orb-map in his possession was only a copy, one that had been tuned only to follow the bearer of the original. It was the original, however, that held the secret of a place of a treasure so vast and incalculable, it could drive even the most ascetic of men mad with greed.

The story was incredible, but then, so was the orb. Beyond that, though, there was something about Frere Vermis' manner that made it hard for Talia, or any of her crew for that matter, to loathe him as much as their instincts said they should. On the contrary, they couldn't help but believe him, so long as he remained at least marginally credible. Talia got the impression that, had Frere Vermis not produced the map-orb, she might have been able to brush him off. As it was, however, now she felt her blood boil whenever she thought of how her own former captain, whose place she'd taken when he'd retired, had betrayed her so, holding back booty that should have been rightfully hers. This feeling was shared by the entire crew in equal measure, and so the chase was on.

The orb of Frere Vermis had indeed done as he'd claimed, and led the crew of the Blood Crow straight to Kanda Har. Now it was leading them across the skies in hot pursuit, with Talia being sure to keep her distance for the time being, letting Kanda Har lead his little group a bit closer to their final destination. The Blood Crow could certainly have caught the little fishing clipper by now, if she'd wanted to do so. It served her purposes better to wait and watch, and let the ones she pursued play right into her hands, so that, when she finally struck, it would be decisively.

Glancing down, Talia saw Dawson coming up from belowdecks, and grinned at the wobbly shake to his walk.

"Lost your sealegs, eh, Dawson?" she called out to him tauntingly. "No time for landlubbers around here - get into the ratlines and shift the sails with the breeze!"

"Aye, Captain Redcoat!" the pig immediately replied, and hastened his way up into the rigging on the spot.

Ah, it was good to be captain. Whatever else might come, and whatever might change in the chaotic world around her, of that, Talia was certain.

Cika took the oiled honing stone to the edge of the blade, just like Kanda Har had shown her, using light pressure instead of bearing down to force the grind, the slow, methodical sound of whetting the steel almost soothing, and the repetitious movements allowing her mind to contemplate other things.

It felt like so much longer than just a little under two weeks that she and her beloved rhino had departed Highloft. In that time, Cika felt that she had changed. The minkling could look back from where she was now and see just how wretched her life had been. Had it not been for the completely unexpected meeting of Kanda Har, quite literally running into him by accident, she knew that it had only been a matter of time before she either wound up dead, or in one of the whorehouses of the kind that had claimed her mother.

On the streets, she had been alone...so incredibly alone. When you lived on the streets, you never let anyone get close. They could betray you in a heartbeat, selling you out for something as simple as a loaf of bread. But here, on this ship...

Cika looked at the others, from Kanda Har where he spliced a rope, to Windspray, her keen dark eyes seeing literally everything around them, to Candi, the soft spoken hippogirl so sweet and generous and almost more innocent than the mink had been...

There was Holly, pleasant, happy and oh-so very graceful, and even Saber, the cobrawoman looking at her shipmates with lust, to be sure, but also something else. Cika had only known them for a short time, but these were people that were worth knowing! The minkfemme hadn't even known people like this existed, much less that such individuals could be part of her life.

And Cika never thought that she would ever be in love. Tully...well, Tully was what he was, and she had known it. Cika might have tried to ignore it, but there was no denying that the red panda had been perfectly suited for life on the streets and in the alleys of Highloft. But to actually, truly, be in love? It was more than a dream or fantasy, and Kanda Har was the most special, wonderful person she could have ever met. Gentle, caring, despite the gruff exterior, she could see it in his eyes, both the one of flesh and the mechanical orb, what was in his heart, and it filled Cika's soul with something that was staggering in its power and strength.

And a part of her realized that she loved the other femmes onboard. She wasn't in love with them, but she cared about them, knowing that she would do anything to keep all of them safe, happy...

Like a family.

Cika didn't know when she put the blade and whet stone down and turned so the others couldn't see her as she rubbed at her stinging eyes, the revelations that had come to her rocking her world, both in reality and metaphorically. Despite turning around so no one could see how she was affected, it couldn't stop the choking sound as she tried swallow down the sudden flood of emotions. Before she knew it, there was a hand on her shoulder and the minkling turned dark, glittering eyes up to see a concerned Windspray looking at her.

"Are you all right?" the albatross asked softly.

"Yeah," Cika replied quietly, nodding a little too vigorously as she dashed at the fur under her eyes.

Windspray just gave the other femme a knowing look and wry smile. Without a word, but insistent, the bird placed her wing like arm at Cika's back and guided her into the deckhouse and to the galley.

Where Cika was having a sort of epiphany regarding the direction her life had taken, the red panda now known as Amber finished bathing and wrapped the linen skirt that had been given to him before adding the top swath and heading down to tend to the crewmember that would get his attentions this portion of the day. A bit of perfume to wrists, neck and his crotch was the finishing touch as his Captain insisted on proper and regular bathing.

A week of his new life had caused him to stop thinking of what had come before, what he'd been. Part of it was his 'breaking in', part of it was that he genuinely liked being a part of the crew of the Bloodcrow in general, and Captain Talia Redcoat's possession in particular.

He looked at the pirate that regarded him with heavy eyes, the eyes of a male that was almost...affectionate, maybe a little sad. There was a sort of benevolence to the look, and it made Amber feel appreciated.

Peels had been the most gentle in regards to Amber's freely offered delights, the tender manner in which the dog had availed himself to the red panda incongruous with the hideous state of his face and the permanent scowl due to the removal of his lips during an interrogation and torture session. Amber liked the yellow-furred mix-breed and smiled at the sailor as he reclined in his hammock.

The sailor helped Amber up into the hammock, then put a finger to his lipless mouth before snuggling the red panda against his body, just holding the teenager almost tenderly. It was the opposite of the treatment he would receive from Hans or Dawson, the pig being a little too rough, but never doing anything that would permanently mar Amber's appearance. It was rather nice to be held and with a sigh settled against peels chest as the two of them rocked slightly in the hammock in response to the air currents that lightly tossed the ship.

Apart from Davios, and the Captain herself, Amber liked being mounted by Peels the most, and was even allowed a little satisfaction as well when the dog applied a callused paw to the red panda's pleasure.

It seemed that this time with the yellow mutt was going to be different, though, and Amber had no complaints about cuddling with the disfigured sailor if that was what was wanted, though he was more than willing to do more, but then, that was what Captain Redcoat had him for, and his entire life was solely for making the vixen happy.

Cika told Windspray of what she was feeling after the birdfemme coaxed it out of her, how it felt like she had more emotions inside her than she could contain, how life had taken her along a path that was so unexpected, so wonderful...almost magical. The minkling also told the albatross how she was coming to see the others, even Windspray herself, how much her heart was filled in regards to Kanda Har, and alternately laughed and cried.

Windspray knew all of this, having gone through similar things herself, and smiled with another of her comforting hugs which brought more tears to the minkfemme's eyes, though they were shed in happiness this time.

"And all of you are so wonderful!" Cika exclaimed as she was enveloped by the albatross' warmth. "You...you're like family! And more! And...and..." She hiccupped a little before continuing. "I...I'm in love with Kanda Har...but I love all of you, too!"

Before she knew what she was doing, Cika had her mouth pressed against Windspray's beak where it joined with the bird's cheek, where the hardness became soft and warm and giving. Then she recalled what the other femme had said about touching without permission and recoiled in absolute horror and chagrin, doing what others had tried to do to her, her dainty paws going to her mouth as her dark eyes widened in dismay.

"I...I'm sorry!" Cika husked, wishing that she could vanish or take back what she had just done, trembling at crossing a line that she really wouldn't have even considered just a short time before. "Oh, Ancients! I...I..." The mink shrank in on herself. "I...and you are so beautiful...and I'm not! And...I'm a terrible person! I'm so sorry!"

Wanting to be anywhere but in the galley with Windspray, Cika tried to dart around her, to flee and take her shame with her. Before she could even dart past the table, the other femme's wings enfolded her, their strength surprising and holding her with enough force to keep her from escaping.

"I'm so terrible! I didn't mean...I wasn't thinking! Please! I'm sorry!" the minkling sobbed.

"Shh," said Windspray, those strong arms of hers, their feathered length ideal for beating the air around her, holding her aloft for hours at a time, also ideal for holding the wriggling little minkling close as her hands gently, soothingly stroked Cika's neck and back. "Shh, it's all right." A finger slipped beneath Cika's chin, tilting the pretty little weaselkin's face upward, whereupon Windspray tenderly kissed her forehead. "I didn't say you _couldn't_kiss me, Cika," she said in a soft, intimate whisper. "And I liked it."

Those words were followed soon after by deeds, as Windspray lightly pressed her beaktip against Cika's lips, a light, sweet bird's kiss. Then she began to lovingly nibble over Cika's ears, nice and slow, preening the teen's fur like she might her own feathers. As Windspray's attentions continued over Cika's face and neck, she'd find that it was a relaxing sensation, something like one of the post-training massages Kanda Har or Saber sometimes gave her, and had worked to teach her to give in return, except less vigorous, more tender. It left the sensitive fell beneath her fur feeling warm and flushed, just like after a good brushing, and soon, despite her former distress and fear of rejection, Cika felt her body start to relax, her mind soon following.

Unknown to Cika, it was at this moment that Candi, who had formerly been working busily in the kitchen nearby the galley, stepped into the room. For such a big girl, the cute hippofemme was really quiet on her feet, a part of her naturally shy nature. Her desires to provide comfort to others, though, was even stronger than her shyness. It was only natural, then, that when she saw the regretful confession of Cika, followed by Windspray's gentle reassurance and affections, she stepped forward, likely unheard by either of the young women. In fact, it was very likely that the first indication they would have that there was an audience in the room was when Candi's arms would wrap around them both, gently hugging both girls to her soft, apron-covered bosom.

"Mmmph," said Windspray in her new position, right behind Cika, squirming a little as she turned her head to look up at Candi. "Comfy," she said with a teasing smile, her white-feathered cheeks a little flushed.

Cika, of course, having been in the middle of the hippo love-attack, was incapable of really doing much except stay where she was. Being a wriggly little minkling, of course, she might have escaped rather easily. But, well, Windspray was right - it was quite comfy where she was, which, as it turned out, was with her head right between the big girl's pillowy-soft breasts. It didn't really help that Candi, being as tall as she was (she was only a head shorter than Kanda Har), only wore an apron that tied around her waist. Or, to put it another way, it helped a very great deal, as Cika gave into her natural minky instincts, and snuggled a bit more into the plush space between the nice, big, grey-pink hippo boobies. It was especially pleasant because of how very smooth and soft Candi's skin was, such a contrast to Kanda Har's thick, leathery armor.

Sadly, though, all good things must in time come to an end (especially sad since bad things tend to have no such restrictions). But, well, Cika was having a little bit of trouble breathing. Wriggling a little bit more, the soft-furred, silver-grey mink squirmed backward, to get a little space. Against Candi's immense (though gentle) strength, though, simple squirming wasn't especially effective...at least until Cika pressed her small hands against the big, plush hippo-boobs squeezing on either side of her head like the folds of a pillow. Feeling a skin texture very slightly rougher than the surrounding flesh, Cika found Candi's arms growing limp the moment the mink touched that differently-textured skin, accompanied by a loud gasp from the cute hippobabe.

Looking up, possible now that she was free of Candi's affectionate hug-hold, Cika looked up at what she was grabbing...and immediately her own cheeks darkened as she saw she was squeezing and stroking Candi's wide, dark pink aureoles beneath her nimble little fingers. There was another little issue with this new position as well, though, as with the former position, it wasn't an unpleasant issue by any means. This was that, in backing up, Cika placed her head right between the downy-soft, streamlined breasts of Windspray. Finally, as might be expected, all of Cika's wriggling and squirming had caused her soft-furred, lithe little body, as naked as Windspray's, and only slightly more naked than Candi's, to stroke and grind against the more intimate parts of her two crewmates, leaving both of her fellow femmes flush-faced and more than a little breathless.

"Hmm," said Cika, smiling in that naughty way that only cute little minks and other small mustelids can really pull off, at once full of mischief and fun but also heart-stoppingly adorable, "you know, Windspray, if you're okay with kissing...just tell me where you're not okay," Cika giggled, just a little shyly, not really used to being the most sexually-experienced person in a group, her natural youthful eagerness and energy driving her onward.

Windspray's eyes widened as Cika turned slightly, her foot hooking around the leg of a nearby stool and pulling it right behind the white-feathered girl's slightly-parted legs, before the slim mink lifted that foot, setting it on the stool. This also had the effect of squeezing her thigh against Windspray's plushly-pink and rapidly-moistening soft-feathered cunny, making the albatross girl gasp loudly as Cika started to rock herself forward and back, rubbing her soft-furred leg against the beautiful bird-girl's sweet pink places. At the same time, Cika put her natural and also extensively trained flexibility to good use as she made Candi gasp as well by stroking her talented fingers in circles around the big girl's swollen, slightly dimpled aureoles, making the hippogirl's eyes close, her breathing quickly speeding up, before catching Candi's very erect nipples between her fingertips. Instantly the pink-grey hippo's eyes snapped open, her lips parting as she gave a high-pitched keening sound. For a moment Cika was worried that she'd hurt the big-but-so-sensitive hippogirl, but a glance downward between Candi's trembling legs proved that fear to be unfounded: Candi's smooth-skinned inner thighs were soaked! Tilting her head slightly in an adorably curious fashion, Cika decided to see what would happen if she took things a little further...and both she and Windspray gawked, chins dropping, as Candi's whole body started to jerk as Cika squeezed down with steadily increasing pressure on her lovely perked nipples, before dropping to her knees with a wild cry she only barely stifled by pushing her clenched fist to her mouth, her hips humping the air, juices almost squirting from her powerfully-contracting cunny as she rested her other hand on the galley's long, sturdy, bolted-down table.

There was, of course, only one proper reaction to such a display.

"Wow," the two smaller girls said in unison, their eyes wide. Windspray stepped in a little closer, resting her hands on Cika's shoulders as she looked over the smaller girl's head at her hyper-sensitive friend, before she looked down, and Cika looked up...and both girls started to smile in a _very_naughty fashion. Candi looked up then with an expression so precious, so sweet, so pleading, and yet also so strangely innocent, thanks in no small part to how vulnerable the adorable hippogirl looked right then. This, as it turned out, was the last straw even for a good girl like Windspray.

With Windspray on one side, Cika on the other, her two friends helped Candi up to her wobbly feet, before slowly, gently leaning her back on the long table, her legs and hips dangling over the side. Obviously working hard just to catch her breath after her recent orgasm, Candi just lay there, watching with face and chest deeply flushed as Cika untied the hot hippogirl's apron and tugged it away, draping it over a nearby stool as she gazed down at the sexy hippobabe's now-exposed sex. Candi's cunny was one of those with surprisingly small, dainty labia which, even when as heavily flushed as she was right then, looked so very snug and sweet and tight. One hand slipping between her own legs, Cika bit her lower lip as she stroked herself, her other hand carefully peeling Candi's slick and juicy lower lips apart, a clear waking fantasy of Kanda Har's fat ol' rhinocock stretching open such a darling little cunny as Candi's filling her mind's eye with such force, it nearly made her cry out, though she managed to stifle herself to a needy whimper with an effort of supreme will.

Hands grabbing the edges of the table, her hips bucking, Candi cried out loudly in her precious voice as Windspray and Cika descended on her full, smooth breasts, peppering them with little kisses and nibbles and tugs until the poor darling is nearly delirious at having those lovely, sensitive mounds so wonderfully abused. She babbled and moaned almost incoherently, her words occasionally interrupted by Windspray and Cika's sweet kisses to her lips, begging for mercy, begging her dear friends not to stop, begging for...for...oh! With a deft turn of her hand, Cika stroked Windspray's back, and then guided the unresisting, intensely aroused young albatross's head downward until her face was poised right above Candi's splayed-apart inner thighs, and clearly-visible cunny. For just a moment Windspray looked up at Cika with a hint of confusion slowly breaking with understanding, but before complete comprehension dawned, Cika pushed her new, dear friend's head downward, Windspray's dark eyes growing huge as the tip of her straight yellow beak pressed against the juicy lower lips of the hippogirl. For just a moment she resisted, though she kept her beak firmly shut, Candi's juices leaking out around the spot where Windspray's beak was parting her folds. Then, with a long, loud moan, Windspray allowed Cika to slowly squeeze the albatross' slender beak into Candi's clenching cunny, making the hippogirl's whole body buck as she cried out once more, words turning into orgasm-riven babbling as she thrashed on the table.

In a flash, Cika hoisted herself up, swinging one leg over Candi's head. As tall as the big girl was, even the fairly tall Windspray couldn't reach all the way to Candi's mouth. But little Cika, lowering herself onto Candi's open mouth, immediately stifling the noisy girl as she gave voice to her incredible sensitivity, her muffled squeals of pleasure intensely sexy as Windspray started to stroke her beak forward and back, could reach Windspray's nether parts without much trouble, positioned as she was over Candi's long, rounded face.

Gripping Windspray's sexy, feathery booty, which did feel a little bony under her fingers (not surprising, considering how light Windspray had to be in order to fly), Cika leaned in and began to nibble and gnaw on the hot birdy's cunny with gusto. She just couldn't help it - she was so turned-on right then! Soon after her eyes rolled back into her head as Candi, squirming and bucking on the table beneath her, suddenly, desperately plunged her muzzle firmly against Cika's cunny, wetly and noisily starting to suckle on the little mink's entire sex with her large mouth. Cika's own head thrust roughly forward, her eyes wide as she forced herself to muffle her precious squeals of pleasure by thrusting her tongue into Windspray's cunny, even as her own silver-furred cunny was penetrated by Candi's slightly rough tongue. Driven by Cika's wet, messy, and very noisy slurping on her feathery quim, Windspray started to buck her head, hard and fast, coming up every few thrusts for a quick breath of air before she'd start plunging her beak once more into Candi's cunny, making the hippogirl's legs kick on either side of the albatross girl's head.

For all her youth and relative inexperience, however, Cika had either more energy or more endurance than either of her companions. Windspray, as Cika discovered with the first tentative thrust of her tongue, still had her hymen, and so, though the minkling did tease and prod at that firm barrier, she made sure she didn't break it, and mostly concentrated on suckling on the sexy, feathery girl's clitty. This proved to be more than enough to make Windspray's head jerk spasmodically, her webbed feet scratching the wood of the sturdy table beneath the girls as she kicked her legs on either side of Candi's chest. Stroking her hands up Windspray's tailfeathers, making them arch over the birdgirl's back, Cika had the precious opportunity to pull back, her face close enough to see everything, as she vigorously rubbed Windspray's throbbing clitty until her cunny and white-ringed tailhole (a feature not present in non-speaking birds) started to clench_with vigorous, violent force. Leaning in a little closer, Cika teased her tongue against that squeaky clean, slightly salty little tailring...which was enough to make Windspray's head snap up as she gave a loud _SQUAWK! of startled orgasm, her smooth, snug inner channel squeezing down firmly on the single finger Cika managed to squeeze past the membrane of her friend's maidenhead.

As soon as the contact between Windspray's beak and Candi's cunny was broken, Candi slumped limply to the table, breathing hard, her body flushed with the many orgasms she'd been worked through by her friends. Windspray slowly rolled to the side on the table, and then turned herself around, snuggling up under Candi's arm. Cika pouted slightly as she looked over her shoulder at her obviously well-satisfied friends. She'd had a few jerky little orgasms herself, sure, but...it wasn't quite enough. After a few moments, though, Cika started to calm down, and smiled, starting to lower herself on top of Candi, her head resting on the hippogirl's pillowy breasts, intending to snuggle with these two precious ones...when her eyes lifted slightly, and then widened as she saw Kanda Har standing there, eyes wide in surprise and arousal, immense grey-skinned cock standing at full attention, its throbbing darker grey head pointed almost straight at her.

For a moment, Cika wasn't sure what to do. Saying something would just disturb Windspray, who really was obviously quite tired by the intensity of her new experiences. Hmm, Candi, though, didn't look too tired; instead, the big, sexy hippogirl just looked like she was resting up between orgasms.

"Wha-?" Candi got out in her cute voice as Cika, acting on the impulse, suddenly scurried down the bigger girl's body, and put her weight against Candi's hip. At first the pink-grey-skinned hippogirl was a bit reluctant, but Cika was very_insistent, and soon Candi was rolling over, careful not to rest her weight on Windspray as she settled back to the table, her legs still dangling over the edge, knees resting on the floor planks. Cika couldn't help but bite her lower lip to partially stifle her aroused whimper as she straddled the small of Candi's back, her little hands stroking and kneading and spreading those bouncy, sexy rumpcheeks. Kanda Har, for his part, watched in silence, though he slowly walked forward, keeping his steps quite still. Bending way over, Cika flickered her dainty pink tongue over Candi's slick little labia, and then down a little more, to her clitty, making the sexy big girl squirm on the table, moaning loudly. These moans got even louder as Cika gripped those smooth, sexy buns firmly, and then spread them apart, nice and wide, laying _everything bare to her rhino lover's eyes as he came steadily closer, until his immense shaft was just fingerspans from the steamy little hipposlit. Eager now, her juices running down onto Candi's back as she rocked herself against the hippogirl's smooth flesh, Cika reached out with her other hand, catching a copious dollop of Kanda Har's precum and stroking it down his length, rolling her palm to ensure she slicked him up, above and beneath.

"What's that?" Candi's asked, her cheek resting on the table, as Cika guided Kanda Har forward just a little bit more, enough that his dripping, fat cockhead was nudging against Candi's juicy cunny lips, her juices flowing freely down his glans at the least little parting. "It feels...."

Curious now, Candi looked over her shoulder, her expression adorable as her eyes widened in surprise at seeing Kanda Har standing there. Reaching a hand back under herself, the hippogirl gasped as she felt that immense rhinocock squeezed right up against her plush pussy.

"I...I've never had a male before," Candi admitted with a shy downturn of her head as she looked up at Cika and Kanda Har over her shoulder. "He's...big. Bigger than any of the toys Saber's used on me." Her eyes turned fully onto Cika. "Will it hurt?"

Cika bent, running her tongue slowly over Candi's smooth and sexy pink-grey buns, making the hippogirl shiver in anticipation.

"Kanda Har's really gentle, Candi," she reassured the hippogirl, reaching down to tenderly caress the sexy big girl's cunny and clit with those nimble, talented fingers. "He'll make your first time really good, won't you Kanda Har?"

"Of course," answered the huge male. Candi, looking into Kanda Har's eyes as he said this, swallowed nervously, and then lowered her chin to the table, her cunny clenching around the swollen cockhead spreading her open slightly, her juices almost literally pouring down her inner thighs at her arousal.

"Okay," she said in a sweet, tiny voice, obviously at once terrified...and also so turned-on right then she couldn't use a louder voice if she wanted. At least until her next orgasm.

Darting to the small rack with different condiments, Cika grabbed the half full bottle of fendis oil that she'd used the first night on board with the thought that if it had helped her slick up enough to take Kanda Har, it wouldn't hurt Candi either. She knew that her lover would be gentle, and he would also make sure that the hippogirl would enjoy his attentions. Kanda Har wasn't selfish in the slightest when it came to pleasure, and the minkling was more than convinced that the rhino enjoyed giving sexual pleasure as much as getting.

Winking at the curious expression on Windspray's lovely avian face, Cika twisted the cork out and oiled up her lover where his huge organ was pressed into the tender folds of Candi, then drizzled a little on the exposed rosette of the hippofemme's tailhole before working it into her flesh were the male was pressed against her, Kanda Har nodding with a knowing smile, though he did shiver slightly when Cika wormed her finger between the two to add a little more in the way of lubrication.

Putting the cork back in the bottle, Cika retreated to where Windspray sat, enthralled by what was taking place before her, her sleek, feathered chest rising and falling rapidly, both from what she'd just experienced and with what she watched. The albatross was so mesmerized by the scene that she was almost unaware of Cika sitting next to her, the minkling's arms wrapping around her while the other femme's paws stroked and massaged her, Windspray's own arms holding Cika to her.

Kanda Har whispered to Candice softly, the words too low for the other two ladies to make out, though the tone was clear, and with a little less fear in her large eyes. After she nodded, Kanda Har stroked her rump cheeks affectionately, the mounds of firm, soft skin flesh fitting well in the rhinomale's large hands, and began to push forward, letting Candi's body accept his mass slowly, giving her time to acclimate.

It was one of the most arousing things that Cika had ever witnessed, and it was absolutely amazing to watch as the hippofemme's body allowed her lover entry inch by delectable inch. Candi truly was a virgin to having a male make love to her, and the texture of Kanda Har, along with the heat from his body was enough to bring the hippo to a silent, shuddering climax before the immense cock was even a third of the way inside her.

It was slow going, Candi nodding enthusiastically, her mouth open in a silent 'O' of ecstasy as Kanda Har continued whispering to her, inquiring how she was feeling. Then he was in, hilted all the way in the supple, succulent flesh that was freely offered. Then the rhino began to slowly slip in and out of the hippogirl, his hips rolling with slow, sure regularity.

Cika watched with more than a little jealousy as Candi had yet another orgasm, her fluids soaking her and the mink's lover as much as the storm the night before had, her grip on the table as tight as a miser's purse strings while she shook and quivered. The girl was sensitive beyond belief, but a substantial part of it was Kanda Har himself. The rhinomale was very knowledgeable about the pleasuring of a woman, and he was more than happy to demonstrate his expertise on one that could accept his entirety.

Of course, that was another point that Cika was jealous of. She still wished that she weren't so small, so that she could avail herself to her paramour and know what it was like to feel him lose control as he was able to with Saber. But then, that was one of the reasons that she didn't mind sharing. While the rhino fulfilled all of her needs and more, Kanda Har needed partners that wouldn't break if he got a little rough, that could accept his fullness and enthusiasm.

Never mind that it was fun watching her love hilt another gal on every thrust.

She didn't know it, but Cika's fingers had been stroking Windspray's side and almost of their own volition had been circling increasingly smaller orbits around the albatross' breasts and pale, pink nipples while the other had teased its way down her tummy to the bird's thighs. It was almost comical to see Windspray's beak slightly open, her delicate tongue moving back and forth with her panting breath and eyes half closed. At the same time, though tentatively and not with nearly the skill Cika employed, garnered from sessions with Saber, the birdgirl stroked the minkling's tender parts with her feathered hands.

"Would you like to go to my cabin?" Cika asked simply.

Windspray nodded, enjoying the show, but somewhat inhibited by others present. She let Cika take her hand-in-paw and lead her from the galley. Because of Windspray's propensity for sleeping in the crow's nest with the open sky all around her, the bunk in the bird's cabin was more of a catch all for things that the bird had accumulated over the few years she'd been on her own. So it was that she was led to the mink's cabin and coaxed onto the bunk.

It was surprising to see the albatross looking at her with an affectionate but needy expression, and it was enough to shunt Cika's desires to the side for the time being, wanting to make the other girl happy. Was this what Kanda Har felt with her at times? Of course she'd wanted to make Kanda Har happy, but this felt...different. Cika had a sudden flash of insight that Windspray hadn't known a lot in the way of affection or pleasuring.

Moving slowly, Cika slithered up onto the bunk, careful where she placed her paws and knees so as not to pull on any of the bird's feathers, and began to explore Windspray with gentle touches, kisses and caresses. She moved up the sleek avian's body so that she could look the other in the eyes. "This...all this is for you," the mink whispered with a gentle brush of fingertips to the other girl's face, tracing along her beak to where it became flexible then gave way to smooth, small feathers.

Cika kissed Windspray wherever she touched her, working her way along the bird's neck and throat, down her chest, pausing at each downy breast to nuzzle and tease, all the while rubbing her body along the luminous white form. The mink smile when Windspray touched her, nodding or making appropriate sounds of encouragement for the other to explore her in return.

When the mink found herself nestled between the albatrossfemme's feathered thighs, the glistening pink lips of her vulva before her, Cika shivered with anticipation. She had already learned that she liked the taste of other girls, and Windspray was no different. She parted the plump folds with her nose, nuzzling the warm flesh of her labia, sucking in deep the musky aroma of female arousal. The mink kissed the engorged flesh, her furry lips covering every inch before doing something Kanda Har sometimes did and placed Windspray's legs on her shoulders. She couldn't do this with Saber, but the birdfemme was not much larger than she was, and rather light and delicate. It allowed the mink to fully access all of Windspray, and Cika took her kisses lower.

It must have been good for the bird because it only took a few minutes of kissing and letting her tongue slip out to taste the albatross before the other let out a series of cooing chirps as Cika tongued her pale pucker before moving back to the dripping slit and began to stroke deep with muzzle and tongue as she darted into the soft folds. It didn't take long before Windspray began to tremble as Cika used her tongue to dart in and out of the tender opening, pressing against the birdfemme's cherry, but being careful not to be too rough. She remembered how much it hurt when hers had been claimed, and Cika knew it was for another to take, one of WIndspray's choosing.

While her tongue dipped in and out, lapping up the avian's dew, Cika worked her face in a circle so that her nose and lips teased at Windspray's hard, engorged pearl. More was added as the mink placed a thumb on the white rosette of the other girl's anus, rubbing in little circles with varying pressure until Windspray tried to call out her name, though the only thing that escaped was a high, stuttering, keening cry.

Windspray was astonished at the things that were done to her by the naughty little mink that was also so very gentle and tender with her. While the sensations that boiled within her were as intense as any flight she'd ever had, the little mustilidae kept her at the brink of rapture for what seemed hours, her attentions only furthering the pressure with the albatross' body until it all came crashing down and out with the suddenness of a hurricane. Windspray couldn't help but let go with a cry of complete, orgasmic joy as she came harder than ever before and let the world fall away until all she was aware of was that moment, the unbelievable pleasure, and the little mink.

In fact, she was so completely wrapped up in bliss, that Windspray was unaware of when the little slip of a minkgirl slid up alongside her to hold her while the aftershocks rumbled through her body and soul. She was aware, however, when Candi wailed from the galley down the passageway as she too, was overcome by mindshattering climax, Kanda Har's bellow a complimentary counterpoint.

When the bird opened her eyes, the world still spinning with swirling colors superimposed on her vision, Windspray felt Cika stroking her lovingly and found her dark eyes gazing at her happily.

"I hope that was good," the minkling said with a giggle. "I don't know why no one has ever taken you as a lover, because you are one of the most beautiful, special, incredible people I have ever met, Windspray." She kissed the side of the albatross' beak while holding her with tender affection. "All I know is I'm very happy you let me share that with you."

Amber shivered with a tremor of dread as Dawson pulled off his shirt and tossed it away, the pig's expression as hard and hungry as the corkscrew shaped erection the black and white porcine sported. When Dawson was like this, Amber knew that it wasn't going to be a pleasant time. He would much rather have shared a hammock with Peels or Davios, or, Ancients permitting, the Captain.

There were no words or any of the preparation that others enjoyed. Dawson simply hauled the red panda to a barrel, pushed the boy that was more a girl now over the container of provisions, and tugged the skirt up none to gently. The pig only snorted in amusement as he spat in his hand and rubbed it over his end before placing the end of his cock against the well used pucker of the boy's anus.

Dawson didn't drive himself home as he wanted to, not wanting to lose his privilege of access to the Captain's plaything, and pushed in ever so slowly. Amber only whimpered once as he was filled, the pig pausing before hunching over the boy and began to hump rapidly.

As Amber bit his lower lip at being savaged, he was thankful that his nighttime duties at the last bell would see him in Tosh's hammock, the rat being no worse than any of the others, and better than half of the crew of the Bloodcrow. At least the rat used a little more than spittle as lubrication.

Fortunately it didn't take long for Dawson to finish and the pig came with a snort, emptying an impressive amount of cum into the boy. The two-tone pig gave one last little thrust to make sure he was completely emptied before pulling out, the twisted shape of his cock pulling a little uncomfortably on Amber's sensitive pucker and gave the cabin boy a pinch to his cheek with a laugh as he hauled his sailcloth trousers up.

"See you again soon, Amber," the pig chortled as he snagged his shirt and left the storage hold.

The red panda only nodded, keeping silent until the pig left, waiting for the door to close before beginning to tug his skirt and top back into place and fixing his head hair. He, and Dawson, had been unaware of a pair of scowling, green eyes that watched, and it was all the little cross-dressing teen could do to keep from screaming as a large paw wrapped around his neck, claws pressed into the little spot that beat with his pulse.

"You aren't done yet, boy," Tam snarled as he forced Amber back over the barrel. "Cry out, and I'll throw your body over the rail," he warned in a growl. "After I kill you."

Amber could only swallow and nod a little as he heard the tiger fiddling with his clothing for several moments, a snarl of frustration as the cloth and sash the Viscount normally wore hampered his efforts. Then he felt the pressure of Tam's cock against him and whimpered softly, tears leaking from his eyes as he was pressed harder into the wood of the barrel.

"No females," Tam growled under his breath with a curse. "Nothing at all save this little catamite, and won't even let me have that! I'll damned well take what I want!"

Dawson had been downright gentle in comparison to Tam's initial thrust, Amber crying out as the rough skinned tiger cock slammed into his body with all of the strength denial, embarrassment and frustration could muster. Fortunately the red panda wasn't completely dry and had the leavings of his previous engagement to help lessen the friction as the tiger began to hammer into him with nearly insane desire.

The enforced chastity served to reduce Tam's stamina, and with a snarl, his mouth and teeth pressed against Amber's neck, the tiger unleashed all of his pent up stress in several mighty heaves deep in the red panda. The worst, however, was when the cat pulled out with as much force as he'd entered, the rubbery barbs of his cock working like a metal worker's rasp file on the tender flesh of the Captain's servant.

As Amber stayed bent over the barrel, tears flowing freely as his throat worked to swallow down the sobs that threatened to spill, Tam situated his clothing, though before he departed he roughly pushed the lad into a pile of dried roots eventually destined for the galley.

"Remember, silence is golden," the tiger hissed, aiming a halfhearted kick into the boy's side before storming off.

Amber was unaware how long he lay there, hurting, knowing he was bleeding and feeling as if he was tore up to a fare-thee-well when someone else entered the storage hold. The fur under his eyes still damp, the red panda lifted his head enough to see Peels looking at him with concern and worry vying with anger and disgust in his eyes, the look completely incongruous with the permanent snarl.

Amber only whimpered a little, the sound barely audible as Peels lifted the boy gingerly and headed with sure, fast steps to the Captain's cabin. He placed Amber on the boy's bunk, sitting with him and doing what he could to silently comfort the russet colored lad until Talia Redcoat entered. The vixen took one look at Peels, then her eyes fell on Amber, the boy's state, the blood and the obvious pain her servant was in before her eyes flared with barely-controlled rage.

"Who did this?" she hissed, her voice reminiscent of a sword clearing a scabbard, and just as deadly.

For what had to be the eightieth time, or so it felt, Tam tensed his body, the muscles beneath his striped fur that were always such a hit with the ladies back home in Highloft rippling as he put all his might into his task. That task, of course, was escape, escape from the ropes that held him fast to the ratlines. Just as all the other times, however, it was no use: there was no one in the wide-skied world that could tie knots like a sky sailor, and as a pirate's vessel had to be ready for fighting at any time, its ropes, the tools that ensured a vessel could move at its best speed and maneuverability in even the worst crisis, those ropes were themselves as well-made as the knots were well-tied. Not even the might Viscount Tammany could escape, and this knowledge galled him to no end.

What galled him more was being utterly at the mercy of a woman.

Of course Amber had told Captain Redcoat everything. How could the red panda _not_tell her everything? Captain Talia Redcoat was not one to whom one lied, even if one wanted to do so. In another place, another time, perhaps Tam's threats could have kept the faux-girl silent, but here, he was not the one with the power. That was the captain, and Captain Redcoat would brook no resistance to her power, to her force of will over the ship and all its inhabitants (excepting Frere Vermis, of course, but there wasn't a crewman there that could fault her for that, and the good brother stayed out of the way anyway, so the subject never came up).

"You know why you're here, Tam," Captain Redcoat was saying as she very gently stroked the sleek-muscled tiger with one gentle, white-furred hand. "But for sake of those who might not have heard the scuttlebutt, Skyman Tam raped _my_new pet." She cast her eyes around at the assembled crew, her muzzle graced by a smile of perfect mildness, which might have led any man to let down his guard, as might her tones, which were almost teasing, even flirtatious. But there was a steel in her eyes that all of her crew, save for the two newcomers, had seen more than once. They were the same eyes Captain Redcoat had when she'd run through countless fools among her own profession who didn't seem to think that a woman's place was as the captain of a pirate's crew. It was the same expression she'd had when she'd gutted the Baron Viljay with his own bodkin after he'd tried to rape her, before making her escape from that vile noble's manse. There was a subtle shiver through her crew, and though other crews of such rowdy beasts as these might have been boisterous at the punishment of one of their own, this was never the case when it was Captain Redcoat dealing out the punishment, not when she was like this. There would be other times for merrymaking. This was not one of them.

"I've killed for less, Tam," said the captain, her voice never losing that pleasant, lightly teasing tone as she continued to stroke her hands over the helplessly-bound tiger's body, arching an eyebrow as she cupped his pleasantly large balls, for she was squeezing them only just enough to feel their heft, her carefully-trimmed clawtips (the only color on her hands, aside from her pink pawpads, even if the color was just black) tickling them at the base before withdrawing. Other men in such a position, stripped naked after being easily subdued in single, unarmed combat by a woman head and shoulders smaller than him, and now dangling, bound and completely exposed before that same woman, who had every reason to be unhappy with him, might have been a little more respectful. Tam, however, only bared his fangs around the thick ballgag in his muzzle, which the captain had applied as the only way she could keep him from "Saying something he'd regret later," as she put it.

Spoiled rich and rotten as he was, Tam simply didn't understand his position, having never experienced it or anything like it before in his life. Not even when his father was displeased with him (a rarity, for Tam was all the son that Count Tammany could ever want) had Tam ever suffered any corporal punishment, or even any punishment at all beyond a stern talking-to. The handsome young tiger had grown up with the firm belief that whatever he might want to do, so long as it was not expressly against his father's wishes, was permissible. Even those few things his father denied him were negotiable. He was the son of the most powerful man in Highloft, and as such, it was only natural that he should take what he wanted, when he wanted it, and never take orders from anyone, especially not a weak, mewling, sniveling little woman - a vixen, no less! - like Captain Talia Redcoat. Why, if he was back in Highloft...

But Tam, of course, wasn't back in Highloft. He was aboard the Bloodcrow, and many, many days away from his father and his servants and bodyguards and his money and privilege. Here he was Tam the green sky sailor, an untried crewman who had yet to earn the privileges associated with being a full-fledged member of the crew, like enjoying the captain's pets, even had he been gentle with Amber, which he had not. He might have gone to any of the other members of the crew and sought out their company if he needed sexual relief beyond his hand - there were, after all, one or two more females than Talia or Blue on board, and certainly more than enough males, most of whom might have been rather happy to help out a shipmate in need. This, though, would have required Tam to approach them as an equal, a shipmate rather than a noble shanghaied into service on a pirate vessel, and such a loss of distinction was something Tam simply could not abide.

Little did Tam know it, but his parentage was, in point of fact, still serving him well in his present situation, though he would certainly have never realized it. Had he been anyone besides the son of Count Tammany, Talia would have let him keep talking like so many other fool nobles she'd known in her life, until he finally said something to snap what little patience she had, and she ended his life. Exactly what he said would determine how long that death lasted, and how painful it was before it finally, inevitably happened. The gag that so vexed Tam, however, greatly increased his chances of surviving his punishment, something that all the crew around him knew, but Tam did not. Perhaps he would learn of it later, and understand the full weight of mercy Talia was extending him, and perhaps not. This didn't really matter, though: what mattered was that Tam was about to be punished. Talia hadn't dyed her fur that morning - in fact, she'd deliberately washed off the dye that was still there. Her whole crew knew full well what that meant: the captain was going to dye her fur in something besides ink.

"Let me explain something to you, Tam," said the lithe vixen, dressed in just slightly more than the skyman she was about to punish, not caring that her supple body was on full display to the eyes of her whole crew, save for her high-legged boots, which only served to accentuate her shapely curves, the obvious, toned muscle beneath her snowy white fur serving only to enhance her beauty all the more. "You don't seem to have learned it before, and I don't know if you'll learn it after our little session here. I hope so...provided you survive." She slid a riding crop from a rack of tools she had standing nearby, and gave it an experimental swish through the air, smirking as she saw that Tam didn't flinch at its sound - he hadn't learned fear yet; just one more thing she'd have to correct about the spoiled young male. "I hope you do survive, Tam," she continued as she turned, sashaying casually back to where the tiger dangled helplessly from the ratlines, spread-eagled and tilted forward at a roughly forty-five degree angle. "I think you have some potential, some promise, and it would be such a shame to waste it because I got a little out of control."

Tam's whole body tensed suddenly, his eyes popping wide open. A moment later, the loud crack of the riding crop hit his ears, the sound slower than the action that had brought it. It hurt! The tiger had never realized that there could be this sort of pain in all the world! He'd been in fights, certainly, taken punches and cuts and even a pistol shot or two. All those injuries had hurt, but they'd been a manly, powerful sort of hurt, something he could shrug off in the throes of adrenaline or the dregs of a cup, and then have scars to show to others to demonstrate his bravery. But this...how could he show others scars on his bottom with pride? How could he muster up adrenaline when he was in such a situation? Talia didn't bother to give Tam any answers to these questions, having only paused just long enough to let that first strike sink in, before she stepped forward, arm and wrist lashing forward with a will. It was like sword practice, almost, striking those places that could bring the most pain and humiliation without quite going too far. Of course, with a riding crop, this wasn't so hard, not really. But Talia felt she'd need the warmup, to improve her odds of not going quite too far.

Despite all his claims to bravery, all his prowess with a blade or a pistol, Tam was staring, wide-eyed, slack-jawed, when Talia came to a stop, at least for the moment. As she turned to put the crop back in its place on the rack, her deft fingers selecting another tool, she continued to speak, not knowing if Tam could still hear her after all the bright red welts she'd left all over his body, not stopping at his back and bottom, but also covering his chest and inner thighs, only narrowly avoiding his dangling sheath and sac on several occasions, though coming close enough that she'd made his entire body jerk violently in anticipation of the agony that such a strike would surely cause, leaving Tam with the lingering nightmarish ghost of the pain that could have been. She hoped he could hear her, though. Perhaps some of the words might get through to him.

"You need to learn your place, Tam," Talia said as she lifted the stiff bamboo cane, which she knew would leave thin white scars on the tiger that would linger for years beneath his fur, visible and constant reminders of his transgression. "More generally, you need to learn humility. Once you've learned that lesson, all the others should fall into place." Now, at last, she saw Tam jerk when she gave it a few practice swings, letting it whistle through the air, and smiled - surprisingly, it was not a cruel smile. "It's the hardest lesson of all, Tam," she said gently in his ear, catching the eye of the tiger as he looked at her, seeing how desperately he was struggling to hold back tears from the pain and humiliation that engulfed him right then. "Learn it, and then you may grow strong. Then, and only then, you can be one of us."

This time, when the first stroke connected, Tam screamed.

The emptiness in his belly sated with what was almost a sumptuous feast, prepared expertly by Candi, Kanda Har stepped up to the deck from below and looked around, his eyebrow raising high when he didn't see Cika anywhere. She had finished up the crockery after everyone was finished eating then scampered off, like the other girls, still naked as you please.

The weaselkin hadn't been in her cabin, nor his, and Saber was also alone, causing the rhino to wonder where his little lover had wandered off, which certainly couldn't have been very far. He was distracted for a moment by the colors of the sunset and ambled to the rail, his steps sure and steady as the deck rocked gently in the air currents, and placed his hand on the worn but well cared for wood and brass as he looked at the majesty before him. Not for the first time he wondered what had possessed him to think that he could be land-bound and run a tavern when he belonged in the skies.

The setting sun lit the world around them with dark purples and bright red-orange and magenta highlights, in the distance a school of cloudskippers swirled and spun as one, their silvery sides and delicate wing membranes catching the light like they were made out of jewels, causing the huge rhino to sigh and smile.

No, he belonged in the clouds, roaming the skies as whim and fate decreed, and it seemed as if Cika herself was also meant for the same, having taken to life on the little vessel like a newborn to its mother's breast.

Of course, the journey had done her well, her skills in fighting and sailing were growing, and the steady diet of good, solid fare had started to fill out some of her curves, though because of the work and training, much of that was sleek muscle. Even her fur had a softer, richer look and feel. It also made him proud that she was turning into a sure and confident woman and that he had a hand in that.

As he thought about how the former street thief was growing right before his eye, he heard her and Windspray giggling madly and looked up, seeing the two in the crow's nest atop the mast. The pair looked down and both giggled again, their expressions clearly stating they had been up to a little naughtiness, though Kanda Har was fine with that as well. He knew the birdgirl was almost a complete novice when it came to matters of the heart, and he could think of no better person to show the albatrossfemme physical love than little Cika.

His heart almost stopped when the minkling leapt from the crow's nest with a laugh, catching a line a third of the way to the deck, using her natural agility to spin around and slip down the rope before landing lightly on the deck, Windspray landing a moment later next to the other femme with a flaring of her wings.

Kanda Har caught the weaselkin as she launched herself into his arms and kissed him deeply.

"Windspray was showing me how to navigate!" Cika said proudly.

"Well, Windspray's a great navigator," the rhino replied with a deep chuckle, snugging the warm girl tight for a moment before letting her slide back to the deck.

The birdfemme smiled happily. "She's a fast learner."

"I have great teachers!" Cika chimed, her ears blushing at what she considered to be high praise.

That earned the minkling an affectionate preening of her ears from the albatross. "You two enjoy the sunset. I want to go look at my charts." She gave the two a warm hug before heading to the deck house and down below.

No sooner were Kanda Har and Cika left alone on the deck then the mink took her rhino lover's arm like she always did, wrapping both her paws around it and snuggling against his side. "Windspray says we'll be at Stormhaven in a few days."

Kanda Har nodded. "We're making good time. We'll probably sell off what's in the hold by way of Windspray's catch and buy provisions there."

"Is it a big port?"

The rhino shrugged. "It's not the grandest of towns, but it's not too bad. Certainly it's no Highloft, but it's not a complete pit like Shatter Rock. I don't think I'd let Windspray put in at Shatter Rock. All of you'd be kidnapped and sold off before you could blink!" He looked down at the mink. "Or they'd try. I might have to take offense at anyone messing with you or the others."

That earned Kanda Har a warm smile and another hug. "I'd like to do something nice for everyone," Cika said before wrapping her arms around the rhino's waist. "Especially you."

"What do you mean?"

Instead of answering, Cika wordlessly coaxed Kanda Har down below to her cabin. She rooted under the mattress of her bunk for a few seconds before pulling out a parcel that was a bit larger than her paw. "When we left Highloft, I sort of forgot that I had this, what with seeing Tully and all the excitement. It's Tamanny's purse. I figure with all the trouble this almost got me in, I might as well use it for the people I love, and it's also a way to say thanks to Windspray."

Kanda Har smiled, also having forgotten the pouch of coins that had nearly gotten the darling little mink into serious hot water. He took it from her outstretched paw and opened it up, his good eye widening slightly. There was a fair bit of silver, a copper or two, but most of the heft came from good, yellow gold coins. "You know you have a small fortune here, Cika?"

The minkling shrugged. "So we can get everyone something really nice! But I want you to have something too!" She pushed the hand with the purse away, embracing the rhino with not just her arms, but her whole body. "I...I always though being rich would make me happy, but...well, there are things that gold and silver can't get you, aren't there?" She looked up with warm eyes. "Money can't buy friends. You can have people that you think are friends, but when the money's gone, so are they, aren't they? Here...here we have friends, and they don't care if we have money or not."

The girl began to literally climb Kanda Har, her arms holding onto his shoulders as she leaned closer, her dark eyes heavily lidded, mouth opened slightly.

"And money doesn't buy love. That's a gift, not something that can be bought," the weaselkin whispered before her mouth found his, pushing past his lips with her tongue, pressing her body hard against his thick, armor like hide. Cika was a little breathless when they parted, her chest heaving. "Yeah...definitely a gift. Lay on the bunk, love," she whispered.

Stunned wasn't quite what Kanda Har was feeling, close, but not quite. Cika was more...assertive than she had been, but not bossy. Again it was the whole process of her coming into her own, and it filled Kanda Har with an indescribable feeling to know that he was a part of this process.

No sooner did he sit on the edge of the mattress then the minkling was all over him. She'd found all of his few sensitive spots, especially those that got him worked into a froth, and she exploited every single one of them shamelessly until he was at full mast. As Kanda Har leaned back on his arms, Cika applied herself to his raging erection, slipping the head into her muzzle without hesitation and bobbing up and down immediately accompanied by wet, sucking sounds.

She didn't plan on pleasuring the rhino this way for very long, and only worked on him enough to get the big male slicked before climbing onto his lap. With a paw on either shoulder, Cika lowered herself down, working back and forth and wriggling terribly until the monstrous cock was seated firmly in her opening, her own juices already flowing and adding to what she'd prepared with her mouth. Her gaze locked with his, she lowered herself down until Kanda Har was in as far as he could go, her lips parted in a smile of delight with eyes half closed in bliss.

The burly rhinomale could only moan as his lover enveloped him in the wet heat of her cunny and began to bounce up and down, slowly at first, then with greater speed and force. When he tried to speak, the naughty mink pressed her mouth to his, her tongue finding his own. It helped to swallow down the cute little squeaks and squeals she let out, keeping the noise to a minimum. When she pulled back, it was with Kanda Har's lower lip caught in her teeth in a gentle bite, a grin on her muzzle. The grin grew even bigger when his hands latched onto her rump, massaging her ass in small circles that had the effect of stretching the flesh around her little clitty and intensifying the feel of Kanda Har being inside her.

"Oooohhh!" the mink moaned, her body cinching down on the rhino as she continued to bounce up and down. "Yes! By the Ancients, I love how you fill me!" Cika husked, her eyes closing tight as she continuously slammed herself hard on the cock within her.

This was a side that Kanda Har hadn't seen but once before, the little femme being so aggressive. He was worried that she might hurt herself with the way she repeatedly impaled her body on his other horn and was about to coax her to slow down when Cika began to tremble and thrash in the throes of climax.

When Cika came, the amount of her juices she exuded was almost as copious in volume as Kanda Har's own orgasms. She didn't relent in her pace, though, and continued to slide up and down, bracing herself on his broad shoulders, and when she could, she opened her eyes and gave her lover a very naughty and mischievous grin.

"Now for something just a little different!" Cika told him in a breathless whisper.

Before Kanda Har could say anything, the minkling spun with his thick, grey cock deep in her body so that her back was to the rhino. Then Cika bent forward, her paws on his knees, tail flipped up over her back so that he could see how he penetrated the weaselkin's tender young flesh, how her cunny was stretched to the maximum and still managed to cinch tight around his girth.

It was quite the spectacle, and both of Kanda Har's eyes were locked onto where he and Cika were joined, the way her own flesh seemed to nibble at his erection, how her dew darkened his skin, his nostrils filled with the smell of good rut and healthy young quim. His hands stroked and massaged her cheeks as she continued to accept him in this manner, squealing when he pressed his thumb against the tight ring of her tailhole or the way Kanda Har tugged on her tail, finding that little place just underneath that was so sensitive.

Cika had learned much about her body, knew just how much she could take, and with Kanda Har, every time they made love was like the first with the way he fit inside her channel. She came several more times, wriggling and squeaking happily, shivering and shuddering as she experienced a chain of orgasms that was like the rapid chain of lightening from the storm they'd all weathered.

Then she heard the chuff from the huge male that told her he was close. Cika couldn't help but smile as she bent further over, supporting herself with one paw while the other found the sac with his balls, reaching as far under him as she could to grasp his gravid orbs and massage them, tugging on them to help stir the semen that she knew boiled within, the pressure that built in Kanda Har's need for release. That was when she also began the exercises learned from Saber, the wicked cobrafemme teaching her how to control muscles in a way the minkling had ever even dreamed of.

Her cunny gripping the rhino cock tight, Cika milked the hard, hot staff with all her might, her tailhole almost winking at Kanda Har as she tensed and released tensed and released even as she slid up and down his cock with more enthusiasm and speed. Then he grabbed her hips and waist, his eye of flesh rolling back while the mechanical eye began to pulse in shades of red.

The first blast of Kanda Har's hot cum flooded the minkette with its delicious volume, making Cika feel as if she were being filled with the light and heat of the sun itself and screamed with joy. "YES! So deep! So deep inside! Yes! YES!" She tugged a little harder on his enormous balls, just enough pressure so that her lover hovered on the threshold of pleasure and pain, that little bit of extra play almost doubling his normal amount of thick, creamy jizz.

Cika kept Kanda Har in that moment for as long as she could, until he began to twitch with too much pleasure, finally reaching the point where what was so good began to hurt. She would have stood to withdraw, but the orgasm had been one of the more powerful for the rhino and already he was softening, though to his credit, he was pleasuring several eager, young femmes. It was a testament to his stamina that he'd gone this long after having tended to both Candi and Saber that day.

It was a little amusing to see Kanda Har slump back against the pillows, his chest rising and falling as he took in deep gulps of air, and Cika was careful as she slipped up his body to kiss him tenderly on his lips. "Was that good for you?" she asked with a smile.

"Cika...I think you've...worn me out..."

The minkling laughed lightly. "That or all the other girls before me!" Her paw caressed his cheek. "Maybe we should go a little easier on you. I guess that there really might be something as too much of a good thing." She poured him a tankard of water and put it in his hand. "Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back," she instructed with another kiss.

Kanda Har nodded and drank down the water, feeling the cool, sweet liquid replenish him a little. Then moments later the weaselkin reappeared with a pitcher that had steam rising from it. Cika poured this into a large bowl before getting a good, stiff bristled brush and chunk of Candi's homemade soap.

"Now, I was thinking that you're always taking care of me, and it's about time that I return the favor. Can you make it to the stool?"

The rhino nodded, a smile tugging at his mouth as he shifted from the bunk to the simple, sturdy wooden stool, managing to keep from groaning as his muscles protested. No sooner did he get situated then Cika began to scrub him thoroughly with the brush, soap and hot water. It had been a while since he'd had something like this done, the last time he could recall being one of the pleasure houses he'd enjoyed shore leave at a few years back. The brush felt good against his thick hide, and the minkling paid extra attention to his back, an area he had difficulty reaching.

"I think when we get to Stormhaven, I need a real sword. Candi really wants her kitchen knife back. Nothing fancy, but good. Do you think we have enough? For all the presents and stuff as well? I've never had enough coin to give someone presents. It's kind of exciting!"

Kanda Har chuckled at the girl's bubbly monologue. "We'll have enough, don't worry!"

With a sigh of complete relaxation, Kanda Har let his little lover tend to him, Cika seeming to get as much out of it as he did, humming happily as he scrubbed and rinsed and massaged. After almost an hour of hedonistic delight, she kissed his cheek. "Better, lover?"

"Better," he agreed, gracing her with a smile and pat to her firm bum.

"Good! Now, why don't you go to the galley and get a mug of grog. That'll give me a chance to clean up, too. Then I think it's to bed. Well, for a little while. I offered to take some of the watch tonight."

"With Windspray?" he inquired with a chuckle.

"Yeah," Cika said with a nod. "Does...does that bother you? I know that you think of her kinda like a poppa would, and I know that you find it fun when I spend time with the other girls. But...well, if you want me to stop, I will. I love you and I don't ever want to hurt you, Kanda Har. Not for all the gold in all of Skyworld. I'd die before I hurt you," she told him with complete sincerity in her dark eyes.

Kanda Har's good eye showed the depth of his emotion as he heard Cika's declaration. She meant it with all of her young heart, that much was obvious, and it touched him at a deep point within his heart, a point that was still tender after all these years of rough living and hard fighting. Somehow, before he'd met Cika, Kanda Har had never thought of himself as the sort of fellow to settle down with anyone. There'd be a string of lovers, certainly, and some would probably spend more time with him than others, but there'd never be The One. That sort of thing was for romantic ballads and sinful novels (but then,all novels were sinful, if you believed the moralists of the day). But now Kanda Har was looking into Cika's eyes with his one good eye, and seeing...well...everything. She didn't keep anything from him, no secrets, no hidden agendas. He didn't know everything about her past, of course, but then, she didn't know everything about his past, and it's not like they were hiding that: it just hadn't come up.

Would he hold her to what she'd just said? About how she'd die before she hurt him?

"I won't hold you to that, Cika," said Kanda Har gently as he leaned into the gentle pouring of the water from the bowl in the little silver-grey mink's hands, rinsing off the suds into a bigger bucket. "Mmm, that feels good. But, well...we all hurt each other, sometimes." His eye, which had closed in his contentment, opened once more to look at her with a lingering reflection of past pain from past loves. "It's a part of living. Sometimes we do it without meaning to, and usually that's the sort of inner injury that can hurt the most. Still," and now he smiled, taking the towel from her hand and standing up, making her smile as she watched him shimmy slightly into the towel to dry off, the sight rather comical, "it'll hurt a lot less if we stay honest with each other. Truth hurts, but not nearly as much as lies, or as long. So," he paused a moment as he rubbed his head dry, being careful around his mechanical eye, before handing Cika the towel, letting her briskly buff down his legs, though she did, perhaps, give some extra attention to his long, flaccid penis, catching the droplets of water that had been dangling at the tip, "let's start with honesty about our relationship, especially who we're going to allow into it."

Cika, momentarily distracted by the pendulous penis right before her eyes, turned her dark-eyed gaze upward, to Kanda Har's face, before she lifted her arms, letting him reach down and gently scoop her up into his embrace, cradling her tenderly as he lay back on the bunk. They had learned how to read each others' body language so well in the time they'd spent together, the two hardly needed to speak much anymore. In honesty, that was how it was with most of the crew now, as they'd all drawn together. They were family, or as close to it as any group of such different individuals could possibly be, united in a common enjoyment of the company of the others, and, perhaps, a common love.

"What do you mean, Kanda Har?" asked Cika, before heaving a long, happy sigh as she snuggled against the rhino's warm chest, his arms covering her body so nicely.

"I think we're both the sort who don't like to be tied down," Kanda Har continued. "Using a relationship like a set of chains. That's what they say wedding bands used to be, you know: a chain binding a freshly-stolen woman to her new master, which he'd make steadily smaller as he grew to trust and love her, until it was just a small ring. But I think we both want someone we can turn to when problems come, someone we can hold onto when life gets rough." He smiled gently. "Someone to really, truly love, with that sort of love we can just rely on. Now," his smile spread a bit wider, "all of that said, I don't mind you and Windspray making love. It's about time that girl got laid, and I can't think of a better person to do the laying than you. You haven't said anything about the time I've spent with Candi or Saber, but you don't seem to mind."

"I don't," Cika assured Kanda Har quickly but firmly, meaning it deeply, before she smiled a moment, then giggled. "Candi's really cute, and I love how you treat her. Saber's...well, Saber is Saber, and that's all I can say about that. Except maybe that I think she needs you, and me, and all of us. She might not say it, and sometimes she's kind of scary, but I get the strong feeling that that bad, mean cobralady just needs friends she can rely on. I don't think she's ever had people like that in her life before, despite all the experiences she's had up until now, and I don't want her to lose what's probably the closest thing to love she's ever had." Leaning up slightly, Cika tenderly licked one of Kanda Har's darker grey nipples, one of his more sensitive spots, making the rhinomale shiver slightly. "That, and it's really sexy to watch," she added with a naughty grin, making Kanda Har chuckle.

"I could say the same of your fun with Windspray, and also with Saber, when you let the bad cobralady track you down," the rhino agreed. "So I propose this as a standing arrangement: we have a somewhat open relationship. 'Somewhat' meaning that we put the wishes of each other first. If I don't approve of someone, I'll tell you, and the same goes for people you do or do not like, for whatever reason; and when we're told by our love, our mate, that we should stop," Kanda Har shrugged, "then we stop."

"Mate?" asked Cika, her bright, dark eyes widening. Kanda Har smiled in response, and then kissed her, slow and tender.

"If you'll have me," he said in a soft whisper, looking as well as sounding more vulnerable than Cika had ever seen the big male act.

Cika's response was to kiss the huge rhino all the more passionately, her body squirming against him in her eagerness, her overwhelming joy making it impossible for her to properly hold still.

Nobody noticed Holly. Actually, she made it a point of pride. The slim young doe had always been an expert at just being overlooked, blending into the rest of the furniture as though she were one with her surroundings. It was a part of her tribal upbringing on the large and still mostly unexplored floating continent of Ominus, where it was usually a lot easier to defend yourself if your enemies couldn't find you in the first place, before you feathered their necks with your arrows.

Even aboard ship, Holly had found that being seen-but-unseen was a very useful attribute. She'd always cared deeply for Windspray, since she was older than the young and sometimes slightly oblivious albatross, and her mothering instincts went out to the white-feathered female. It had been Holly who'd been the first person to join Windspray's crew, when the young bird had decided to start fishing about a year ago, away from her people for the first time, and she'd found her ability to divert attention away from herself could work just as easily with others, as long as she put some effort into it. Windspray had avoided more narrow scrapes than she knew thanks to Holly's subtle efforts. But, of course, sometimes just avoiding a problem wasn't enough, especially in some of the rougher ports where they holed up, when they were still just learning some of the intricacies of the trade, in their first few months of business.

Kanda Har had been the first bit of good luck, stepping in to show a few local toughs what a real tough could do. He'd been a casual guardian angel for Windspray ever since. Saber, though, had joined on because she liked the chance for travel and few responsibilities, and Windspray and Holly had both been glad to have her, because she was there to fill in the defensive gaps when Kanda Har couldn't be there for them. Candi the hippo had joined up shortly before they'd met Saber, and, if the truth had to be known, was one of the major reasons Saber had joined the crew. Windspray, of course, was the other. But not Holly.

Maybe Kanda Har had noticed her, quietly observing from the doorway as Cika showered her affection on the big male, and he'd eagerly accepted it. His mechanical eye was certainly equipped for that sort of thing, and Kanda Har wasn't one to be caught completely off-guard. Then again, he'd been enjoying himself quite a lot, and so the slim doe gave it even odds that he'd seen her. Holly was certain that Cika hadn't noticed her, being too focused on properly pampering her love. Because of this, Holly was fairly certain that everything they said, they said in the candid heat of the moment, fully believing themselves to be alone and unobserved.

What the two lovers said didn't bother Holly at all. It was what they didn't say that made her feel...troubled. They'd been discussing their relationships, their loves, and most importantly, their love, the one they had for each other. All of that was precious, and Holly felt her heart warm at the discussion, at the open confession of their love. But of all the names that were discussed, hers wasn't one of them.

As the two lovebirds cuddled, Holly made her way up onto the deck, her eyes seeking out and soon finding another sort of bird, Windspray by name. Holly couldn't help but admire the trim, soft-feathered curves of the albatross girl's tush as she crouched on the gunwale near the bow, looking out at the roiling clouds that were even then pattering down a gentle, warm rain, but she gently pushed those thoughts aside. Right now, she had a far more important matter to discuss. Important to her, at least.

"Hello Holly," said Windspray as she half-turned, her face registering her surprise, as she'd obviously been expecting someone else (who, of course, Holly didn't need to guess). Then Windspray's expression became concerned as she saw her friend's expression. "What's wrong?"

"Windspray," began Holly, looking at the beautiful white bird with her large, expressive brown eyes, "am I unattractive?"

"Huh?" The reaction was typical of Windspray, as was the confused, bewildered look she gave her friend. "No! Well, I don't think so, anyway." She blinked her dark eyes twice, then, and cocked her head slightly to the side, obviously terribly confused. "Why would you think so?"

"I'm the only person on this boat that isn't having sex with anyone," said Holly, blushing as she said what was on her mind, however frank it might be. "You and Cika, Cika and Kanda Har, Kanda Har with Candi and Cika, Saber with Cika and Candi and Kanda Har. And me with nobody."

Windspray blinked several more times. Then, turning, she hopped to the deck and wrapped her soft-feathered arms around her slender friend, rubbing her back through the saffron sarong Holly was wearing.

"I didn't know you felt like that, Holly," said Windspray. "Actually, I'll bet nobody on the ship knows. But, well, I never wanted to pry or anything. I know the mess you left back home."

Ah, the mess. The mess, in this case, was Holly's betrothed. As was customary for her tribe, she'd been promised to a man shortly after her birth, as a way of improving relationships between tribes. She'd met the buck only a month before they were intended to be wed, and the experience hadn't been a good one. Oh, he hadn't been a complete brute, though she'd overheard some of the things he'd said about her, and what he intended to do to her after they were married, to his friends, using her talent for remaining unnoticed to hear things she knew she was never intended to know, at least not until it was much too late. Still, he'd been reasonably pleasant to her when they were together, and hadn't made any heavy presses to have her mate with him before they were married. But he gave her such an uneasy feeling, especially after what she'd heard him saying to his friends, and even more, he and his whole tribe had been very clear that they didn't appreciate Holly's independent streak, nor her skill at hunting, or archery. Those weren't womanly activities, according to that tribe, and she would have to surrender them forever, and settle down into being a proper, obedient little wife.

Holly and Windspray had been friends even back then. Ominus' coast, where Holly's tribe lived, wasn't too far from the rugged islands where Windspray's people made their rookeries, and the two had immediately felt that special kinship that only destined friends can feel, almost immediately sensing that each shared a kindred spirit, finding it easy to talk to each other, and to share their thoughts and dreams without fear or shame. One of those dreams had been Windspray's idea of a fishing boat. It was an idea that appealed to both her and Holly, because it meant they could work as much as they liked, or as little, and spend most of their time in the skies, away from the people who all-too-often hurt them on land.

It was Holly's imminent marriage that prompted her to pool all her goods with Windspray, gathering together just enough to buy a secondhand fishing clipper from an old codger who'd decided to retire on one of the nearby islands, but who'd been willing to sell his old pride and joy to a pair of cute femmes when they'd asked him very nicely. Ever since then, though, neither Holly nor Windspray had shown much interest in relationships with anyone, outside of their own simple friendship. Windspray's reason for avoiding such entanglements of the heart was because she was afraid of being hurt. Among her own people, she'd started out as a gangly, unattractive, perpetually clumsy little thing, and as is all-too-often the case, even as she grew out of her "ugly duckling" phase, the people of her tribe weren't ready to let her escape the labels they'd already placed firmly upon her; she simply made too good a target of ridicule, the one designated to be the lowest in the pecking order, sometimes literally, ensuring that others could feel good about themselves, because at least they weren't her. Removed from their constant criticism, Windspray's heart had slowly been able to heal, and she'd begun to feel the joy of flight, without having to worry about being judged. In fact, she'd healed so much, that she'd finally been willing to accept love when it was offered, by the sweet little mink, Cika. Holly, though, was still a bit hesitant. She'd started to grow a bit flirtatious when Saber joined the crew, knowing that the wicked cobra would defend her from any unwanted advances, but aside from some light teasing, Holly was still too worried about letting anyone have the power over her that a committed relationship implied.

Now, though, Holly had heard Kanda Har's words in the quarters he and Cika shared, and her eyes had been opened to another sort of relationship, one that was still committed, but not so confining as what she'd always thought must be the natural order.

"I think," said Holly as she explained her change of thinking to her best and dearest friend, placing her hand on Windspray's shoulder, "I think I want to try. Just...try, and see what happens."

"Well, try with who?" answered Windspray with a cheery smile, seating her feathery tuckus back on the gunwale. "Maybe Kanda Har? He's a nice guy, I think, and Cika told me how gentle he was with her the first time they made love. He didn't even put his...um," she flushed, "his thing inside of her, at least the first time, because he didn't want to hurt her. He waited until they had the time...and, well," Windspray looked a little sheepish. "Cika promised me she'd tell me how the second time went tonight, up in the crow's nest. She also promised she'd bring one of Saber's toys, so she could show me exactly what he did to her."

"You're going to let Cika take your virginity?" Holly asked as her mouth dropped open. "Are you sure about this?"

"Um," Windspray flushed even more deeply, "yeah, I think so. It's a big step, I know, but, well...I wanna try it with her boyfriend sometime, if he'll have me, and she's said she'd like that too. If I'm gonna do that, though, I need practice, and Cika's a wonderful girl, and really special. I think I'd like to give her my maidenhead; I think I can trust her."

Holly frowned at this, her soft, fawn-furred brow furrowing as she thought about this for a long moment. Windspray knew better than to speak right then, knowing how Holly liked it quiet when she was thinking. Finally, the young doe spoke.

"If you're going to trust Cika to take your virginity," Holly said, putting her hands on her hips, "then I'd be a bad friend if I wasn't there with you."

"Holly..." Windspray began, but quickly grew silent as Holly tugged at the knot on her sarong's shoulder, and let the bright orange garment slide down her slim, trimly toned body, baring the soft brown fur of her back, and even softer white fur of her chest, belly, and inviting little mound with its very slight indentation. The pretty deer stepped forward lightly on her dainty feet, and kissed her best friend first on the tip of her beak, and then, more deeply, on the fleshy part at the side.

"Come on," said Holly as she broke the kiss, taking Windspray's hand. "Let's head up to the crow's nest." She gave the white-feathered birdgirl a wink. "I think we should give Cika a surprise."

Cika only smiled as Saber felt her up in an almost affectionate manner as the minkling left the cobrafemme's cabin, one of the serpent's favorite toys wrapped in cloth in her arms. Saber had very much enjoyed showing the tasty little mink how to properly put the strap-on phallus on in a way that would stimulate the weaselkin as well, glowing at the ready agreement of being in the serpent's 'clutches' time next allowed it.

No one had said anything, but with the fairly steady companionship of the little mink, her darling little 'talita' and the impressive Kanda Har, Saber was more than willing to join the others in work she normally tried to avoid, finding the companionship of her crewmates to be a little more meaningful than just the occasional tryst. But there was more to the loan than just getting to play a very naughty version of hide-and-seek with the tender minkette, and the lusty serpent was looking forward to extracting the telling of her rendezvous with the delectable Windspray.

It was with these thoughts that Saber closed the door to her cabin, her scaled and clawed hand reaching out almost negligently for one of her favorite toys, her desires and appetites thoroughly whetted by what she imagined was going to transpire. Unfortunately with her desires raised to such a point, not even her simulacrums of past lovers could help and she slipped from her pile of cushions before slinking down the hallway to the cabin that Kanda Har was in. The serpentwoman wanted to be held and dominated while her needs were met with reckless abandon, and in order to accomplish this she headed to where Kanda Har rested.

Slipping into the crow's nest, Cika found herself immediately in the warm, soft embrace of Windspray, the albatross girl affectionately preening her ears and neck in a way that caused the minkling to suck in a breath as she threw her head back as sensitive places were gently nibbled. "Ancients, Windspray! You're getting too good at that!" she husked throatily as the other femme's breasts ground against her own, nipples teasing nipples as both squirmed and wriggled. When she lowered her head and opened her eyes, the weaselkin saw Holly for the first time, not having noticed her. "Ho-Holly?"

"I hope you don't mind," the birdgirl said softly. "No one....well, no one has been paying attention to Holly," Windspray explained quietly. "She's feeling a little lonely and left out."

A look of chagrin crossed Cika's face and she touched her lips with the tips of her tiny claws. "Oh, Holly! We...we didn't know!" she whispered, her heart going out to the doe. "We didn't...I didn't think you were interested!"

Still sitting in the circle of Windspray's arms, Cika held her own open for Holly, the doe tentative at first, though as soon as she was close the minkling pressed her mouth to the other femme's, kissing deep with her tongue flitting within Holly's muzzle, exploring her with all of the skill she'd acquired over the past few weeks. It was more than the deer was ready for, the sudden erotic contact with another after only having enjoyed her own self-administered attentions causing the needs she'd kept bottled up to flare deep inside her with a heated passion that threatened to burn the doe to cinders.

"Goddesses of my mother!" Holly husked breathlessly as they parted, only to have Cika's attentions replaced by Windspray, her oldest and dearest friend moving in to show the doe that she was indeed desired and cared for. She gulped as the albatrossgirl engulfed her muzzle within her sharp beak, the bird's agile tongue flitting with her own as feathered and furred fingers danced all over her body, touching places that only she'd ever caressed in the dark privacy of her own cabin.

Before Holly knew what was happening, the doe was flat on her back, the other two taking turns in exploring the nuances of her body, perking her nipples to full, hardened arousal with little nips from Cika and gentle preening from Windspray. Though the wing-like sails didn't bellow and ripple with a change of the winds, it seemed as if the little fishing clipper gave a mighty lurch when the minkling wriggled her way between Holly's lean, smooth furred thighs, her muzzle and tongue parting the seam of the doe's femininity.

Cika found the flavor of Holly's lovely slit to be as different from the other femmes' as they all were in appearance. The sweet and tangy flavor and wonderful musk reminding the minkling of summertime in one of the many parks that dotted Highloft's more affluent districts. Then as her tongue slipped past the folds of her inner lips, sliding upwards and across the deer's succulent clit, the contact was more than enough to set Holly to quivering. A gently inserted finger indicated that either the doe was still a virgin, or she was just that tight, though the wet heat that seeped from her channel was more than sufficient for keeping the attention Cika lavished from being uncomfortable.

With the knowledge she'd earned in the art of erotic pleasure, Cika was able to attend the doe with ease using only one paw and her muzzle, letting her tongue, lips and teeth find the little spots that brought the most powerful reactions to the lithe deer while her other paw tended to Windspray's tight hole. As the minkette applied herself to Holly and listening to the albatrossfemme's cooing pleasure as she continued to preen and lick the doe's breasts, Cika learned that the deer was almost the opposite of her in that she went very still at such pleasuring and was infinitely more quiet.

With a wicked grin, Cika wondered just what it would take to make Holly cry out in bliss.

The doe bit her bottom lip hard as her best friend continued to play with her breasts and nipples, astonished that Windspray's sharp beak could also be applied to the sensitive skin of her pink nubs with such gentle precision while she was devoured below by the naughty minkling. It was soon too much and the cumulative efforts of the two other girls brought her to a gasping climax that had her trembling on the planking of the platform, Holly's eyes squeezed tightly shut as she rode out an astonishingly strong climax.

"I'm going to guess that was good for you?" Cika giggled as she licked the deerfemme's juices from her muzzle, a happy smile pulling at the corners of her mouth.

Holly was only vaguely aware of the question as the deep shock of her powerful orgasm began to recede into a body tingling afterglow, her cunny still convulsing with contractions of rapture. When Cika slipped up along her side, her tiny arms and paws slithering around her to hold her tight, the doe opened her eyes and nodded silently, not sure if she could speak coherently yet.

"There's more...if you want," the minkling whispered before giving the deer's ear a teasing lick along the edge. "Oh, Holly, all you ever had to do was say something. You're beautiful. Beautiful and graceful. So much so that you...all of you, Windspray, Candi and Saber make me feel...plain. I really didn't think that you were interested. But..." Cika giggled mischievously with a lustful twinkle to her dark eyes, "now that I know better..."

"What about Kanda Har?" Holly inquired softly as the weaselkin stroked her cheek with the backs of her fingers, a lover's caress that was gentle and heartwarming as you please. The question was a sort of test, to assure the doe that she really had heard the right of the couple's very private conversation.

"I don't mind sharing Kanda Har at all, not with the people that matter the most to me, and that definitely includes you and Windspray," Cika said, also catching the birdfemme's eye and hand to draw her closer. "I...I think that for me, there is no better way of telling someone that they matter, that I care, than by making them feel good." She nuzzled the doe while pulling the albatrossgirl close for a kiss. "I...I love all of you," the minkette whispered as she snuggled against the other two. "Kanda Har and I talked, and I agree with something he said. Love...it's a giving thing...something to...to share. It doesn't demand and isn't used to control someone else. Love is...well, it's something I can give to all of you and it makes all of you feel good, and that makes me feel good, too!"

As the three femmes cuddled together, it was Windspray that looked at the smallest of the trio, her eyes twinkling merrily. "So, what was the first time with Kanda Har like?"

Saber sighed in frustration at being unable to rouse the rhinomale from the sound sleep she'd found him in and, as was often the case, the serpentlady went to find her favorite playmate before the newest two persons on the little clipper had joined them. She found Candi reading a bit of lurid poetry while reclining in her bunk, the fingers of the hand that wasn't holding the flimsy book idly stroking her tummy and the valley between her breasts while she breathed heavily. Instead of the normal nervous expression on the hippofemme's face at Saber's appearance, Candi licked her lips hungrily as she set the book aside on the table bolted next to her bunk and slid over to make room for the purple scaled seductress.

Cika had enjoyed telling of the first time Kanda Har had made love to her, then giggled at Holly's confession of watching what had transpired, the minkling asking if they had given the other ladies a good show with the doe nodding emphatically that she and the rhino most certainly had.

Then Windspray asked if the weaselkin would accept the gift of her virginity. It was easy to see all of the emotions that that particular request carried, and thinking back to how she lost her own cherry, Cika was both honored and a little intimidated. That of course led to the telling of how Tully had claimed her own maidenhead. She tried to convey to the albatrossgirl that it was something that she could only give once, and that it should be with someone special.

"But it is with someone special," Windspray told Cika with a nibbling preen. "I...I want this..."

The birdfemme was very convincing, and it was with some surprise that the mink found Holly helping to put the toy Cika had gotten from Saber on her. The weaselkin had to adjust a few of the straps, and when she was finished, found Windspray looking at her with eager anticipation in her dark eyes while the doe smiled, her own expression hungry.

"When you're done with Windspray, I want you to make love to me as well," the deer said softly.

With a nod, Cika began to prepare the luminous birdgirl the same way that Kanda Har had prepared her, going down on that wonderfully delectable feathered cunny, though she didn't stick nearly as many fingers in as her lover had her. Windspray wanted the minkling to take her virginity with the toy, and that was what made Cika so cautious. She wouldn't be able to feel anything and that made her ministrations gentle. Tonguing and licking the albatross to orgasm helped the white feathered femme relax, and as Cika positioned herself, she was bolstered by the look of complete trust and affection she received.

"Let me know if it hurts," the mink said. "It...it will at first, but then it will feel good, but the pain will last for a few moments," she told Windspray with a caress to her face and kiss to the end of her beak.

It was incredibly arousing to see Windspray on her back, her eyes heavy and dark with her beak parted as she panted in anticipation. Cika got the end of the dildo set at the birdgirl's opening and began to pay attention to the other's expression as she added pressure, slowly, inexorably pushing against the thin membrane of Windspray's virginity. The minkling was about to abate some of the pressure when a flash of discomfort flitted across the albatrossfemme's avian face but was stopped when feathered hands clutched at her rump cheeks.

"Don't...don't stop..." Windspray whispered throatily.

Encouraged, Cika resumed, and in what seemed far longer than a few moments to the minkling, the birdgirl's body relented, the gate of her sacred place opening to allow entry, and the minkling slid the dildo all the way in accompanied by almost the same cry of delight that Windspray gave when she was flying.

There was no controlling the shudder of pleasure that ran through the bird, and she opened her eyes to look at the femme above her with a gleeful expression, nodding with a sigh as Cika began to thrust and retreat almost excruciatingly slowly, sliding the phallus in and out of the slick avian cunny with slow, regular strokes. The weaselkin knew that what she was doing felt good as Windspray's beak quivered slightly and her dark eyes rolled back as they closed while feathered fingers gripped Cika's furry tushie, pulling her deeper in.

The only sounds were the trilling sighs of Windspray, the wet noises as Cika gently plowed her channel, and the breeze in the rigging. Occasionally the minkette would sigh as the smooth nickel studs on the strap that rested within her own delicate folds moved over her pearl, the pistoning of her hips to drive the dildo in and out of the white feathered femme stimulating her, but her focus was more on the pleasure that she was giving in return for the gift she had been graced with.

When Windspray tensed up all over, her surprisingly strong fingers groping at the mink over her body, Cika knew from previous playtimes that the bird was nearing orgasm and she did her best to maintain a pace that would bring a deep, satisfying orgasm. Then the albatross opened her beak wide in what should have been a shrill scream of rapture, though the only sound that came out was a thin, barely audible squawk as the pressure released in a crashing wave deep in the bird's body, her tunnel gripping the dildo tightly as she rode winds of sheer, unadulterated pleasure.

It didn't bother the weaselkin that Windspray didn't last very long, knowing that her lack of amorous encounters left her susceptible to fairly easy orgasms, and did little more than smile as she caressed the soft feathers of the other, waiting for the tiny, jolting shocks of climax to subside while still hilted deep in the birdfemme's sacred place, letting her new lover enjoy the moment for as long as possible. When Windspray did open her eyes, it was to release large tears that Cika knew the reason behind only too well, and the mink kissed them away with gentle brushes of her lips.

"Th-th-thank y-y-you!" the bird whispered as her arms tightened around the pearl grey girl in a desperate display of affection.

Cika smiled and kissed Windspray deeply. "Thank you for your gift," she whispered with a brush of her furry lips.

When Cika looked up at Holly, the doe was unabashedly fingering herself, her shapely legs splayed wide and giving the weaselkin an unobstructed view of her cute little quim and the parted labia that exposed the delicate pink inner folds. "Cika? Will you make love to me, too?"

At other times, Candi had always found sex to be a forbidden thing, something naughty and dirty and "bad." That was just how she was raised, as a woman's virginity was considered something valuable among her commerce-centered people, a way of increasing the value of a female when she was taken as a bride. Of course, hippopotami were a strange people with strange values, outwardly patriarchal with an aggressive stance on protecting their territory, but in reality very heavily matriarchal with a cunning focus on backroom deals to better the trade influence of each family. Daughters among Candi's people were at once a resource to be exploited to build trade relations through marriages, and also the potential heirs to the fortunes of each family, if a given female proved cunning and clever enough.

It was the desire for freedom and to explore the forbidden outside world that had driven Candi onto Windspray's crew. That, and her inherently gentle nature, so very unlike that of most of her fierce and aggressive people. At first, she had been unbelievably happy simply to be free of the constant harem politicking of her people. This state remained even to that moment, but it had evolved over time, especially when Saber had joined the crew. Saber had been a sexually-liberated female, something that Candi had never encountered before - in fact, something she'd never even considered as a possibility before! When the wicked cobrafemme had cornered poor Candi in the galley after Holly and Windspray were above deck, Candi didn't have a single clue as to what to do, or what was going to be done to her. She'd simply trembled as the sinuous purple serpent approached, her eyes mesmerized by Saber's subtly swaying body, and her captivating eyes, so deep and commanding.

And she'd loved it.

It was forbidden, something that good girls like her were never, ever, ever supposed to do. Sex was far too valuable to be given away for free like that, and all of Candi's mother's words had come crashing back after Saber had finished having her way with poor Candi, leaving the hippogirl tied up in the cobra's quarters. She would surely have sunk into a funk of depression...if it weren't for the hard fact that she was indeed tied up in Saber's quarters, and the wicked woman had absolutely no intention of letting Candi have time for regrets. For days on end on that first voyage together, the only breaks Candi got were for meals and snatches of sleep, as Saber properly and very thoroughly dominated the sweet, kind-hearted hippogirl. Somehow Candi knew that, even though she never asked if it were so, if she'd protested against the treatment she'd received, Saber would have let her go. Certainly she was a lot stronger than Saber, and could probably have broken free of many (though not all) of the various methods of bondage the subtle serpent devised. Knowing this meant that Candi was forced to quietly acknowledge, though only in the very farthest parts of her mind, that she was a willing participant in the pleasure being taken from her, and also being given.

It wasn't until Kanda Har, though, that Candi finally made peace with herself.

Saber sensed this immediately as she stroked her black-clawed hands over Candi's smooth, slightly slick pink-grey body, making the larger girl's back arch. Something had changed, and the cobrafemme wasn't sure yet if it was something she liked. Her powerful tail swung around, and wrapped around Candi's wrists, holding them fast even as she turned herself around, lowering her aching, empty-feeling quim down onto the other girl's large mouth. Digging her hands into the ample mounds of the hippogirl's plush breasts, Saber hissed loudly as her favorite toy began to obediently lash her slightly rough and very broad tongue over the cobrafemme's pale purple-tinged slit and further, over Saber's tense, vertically-oriented tailhole.

"You're enjoying this, Candi," said Saber with a light smirk as she casually stroked her plaything's cunny, making the sweet girl beneath her kick her legs, moaning loudly into Saber's snatch as she grew nice and moist, her sensitive body so easily aroused by the skilled serpent's ministrations. "Really enjoying it." She glanced over her shoulder at Candi, barely able to see the other girl's eyes as they peered around the curve of the sensual woman's purple-scaled booty. "Normally you make me have to work for it, until I ravish you without mercy."

Candi's eyes were apologetic, but Saber just grinned, showing her sharp fangs as she did so.

"Don't worry, my beautiful morsel: I'll find ways to ravish you all the same." Her face turned downward, and she flicked out her tongue, tasting her toy as she lowered herself toward Candi's swollen, plush labia. "But not this time."

"Ah!" Candi cried out as Saber's serpentine muzzle pressed against her cunny, forked tongue curling around the hippogirl's hooded clitty, before curling into Candi's gushing gash like an unstoppable ocean wave. And as Saber's tongue arched into Candi, Candi's back arched up off the sturdy bed Windspray'd had specially made for the bigger girl. "Saber..." Candi managed to get out, before all other words were muffled when Saber pressed her own scuted quim down over the hippo's muzzle, squeezing her juicy purple inner flesh against Candi's tongue, which soon started to greedily lap upward into Saber's cunny. Candi always found Saber's sex to be a beautiful thing, a strange contrast of the deep, royal purple of her back and side scales, followed by the lighter, gently violet purple of her underbelly, followed by the once-again deep royal purple that lay, slick and moist and swollen with desire, just past the cobrafemme's tightly-clasped cunny lips, which really were more of a slit than a mammalian vagina, remaining rather snugly pressed together even at the height of Saber's arousal.

Now was one of those times of highest arousal, when Saber's whole body began to undulate in ways that were as strange and alien as they were hypnotic and beautiful. Holly's eyes stayed open to watch even as she plowed her broad, blunt tongue into the sultry reptile's quim, and found herself rewarded with a short gush of cobrajuice, its strangely sweet tang on her tongue like the cloying nectar of exotic flowers on far-distant shores.

Saber gave as well as received, of course, and even as her trimly-muscled rump gyrated above Candi's head, the sway of sexy cobrabooty more than enough to hold the hippogirl utterly rapt in fascination, she gave her lover no chance to relax. Instead, Saber's sharp teeth extended slightly, the cobrafemme exerting some of her truly incredible muscle control to make the razor-sharp tips tease over Candi's most tender, intimate places, her strong tongue joining in the melee, the tips of each prong of her tongue able to work almost like a tiny finger as Saber slowly squeezed the sinuous oral organ far up into her lover's channel. Suddenly tensing her cheeks slightly, Saber let some of her venom squirt out in small spurts, leaving a light sheen to Candi's already soaked inner walls. This had the almost immediate effect of making Candi's whole body jerk, her legs kicking outward at the sudden, intense feeling this produced, the venom leaving her delicate inner parts hyper-sensitive, pulsing and convulsing in waves that were almost too powerful for her to process. Saber didn't stop there, though, tilting her head just enough to position a single fang over Candi's throbbing clitoris, before slightly squinting the eye over the fang, exerting just barely enough pressure to let a single golden yellow drop of the deadly fluid drip onto that hyper-sensitive lovebud.

That was all it took. Candi's entire body convulsed so powerfully, her smooth, sweat-slick form lifted right into the air, only her shoulderblades and ankles holding her up, her hands grabbing the sheets so tightly, they threatened to tear. Candi's eyes stared unseeingly as wave after wave of orgasm tore through her like the sails of their little clipper in a sky tsunami, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes from the raw intensity of it, her throat so tense she couldn't even cry out, the only sound she made a soft, gasping cry every few seconds, which did nothing to properly convey the full weight of what her body was enduring at that moment.

Mercifully, Saber drew her head back, and then slid smoothly off of Candi's body as the hippogirl trembled and bucked and then, very slowly, sank back to the mattress, sobbing in jagged, gasping breaths as she gradually got control of her voice once more. Any more stimulation when someone was in the throes of pleasure like that could prove fatal, making the heart burst at the highest peak of passion. Naturally, Saber hadn't actually bitten down with her fangs. A single drop of cobra's venom was enough to still the heart, paralyze the senses, leave the body weak and helpless for a time. Applied externally, the tiny sample she'd applied to Candi's delicate places had been enough to drive the gasping, panting, crying hippogirl right to the edge of her endurance, leaving her spent and helpless on the bed.

At another time, Saber would have probably done something terrible to poor Candi. It would be something the hippo-hottie would love, of course, but it wouldn't be the sort of post-coitus cuddling that lovers usually did. This time, however, Saber slid her body up next to Candi's, one hand stroking the big girl's belly soothingly, while the other wiped away her tears, her tail caressing Candi's thigh and the swell of her shapely bottom as it rested on the bed. She didn't say anything, though - Saber wasn't really any good at touchy-feely things. All she could really do was let her presence try to be enough. Apparently it was, as Candi tenderly wrapped an arm around the sleek-scaled cobrafemme, cooing in sleepy satisfaction as she closed her eyes, getting some much-needed rest, Saber pressed closely against her soft, pillowy body.

Very slow, lots of lubrication, and plenty of gentle stretching.

Cika had been paying very close attention during her lovemaking sessions with Kanda Har and Saber, perhaps more than either of them thought. Experiencing sex that felt good, the way those two knew how to make it good, was as much an act of education as of recreation for little Cika. As in all things, Cika was an apt pupil, though she learned best by hands-on experience.

A bird's hymen, as Cika discovered quickly, was a very flimsy thing, thin and not terribly laden with nerves or blood vessels. Or perhaps that was just how Windspray's hymen was. Or perhaps Windspray had just been that turned on, and that prepared from their prior lovemaking sessions, that the final breaking of her maidenhead, while very slightly messy, hadn't been nearly as painful as Cika remembered her own deflowering being.

Now, however, as Holly rested her chin on her folded arms, hiking her trim, pert, white-furred rump, presenting herself to Cika, her eyes wide as she looked back at the minkteen, her cheeks deeply flushed with her arousal, Cika started to think, and quickly realized as she gently peeled apart the slim, sexy whitetail's labia, that she was dealing with a far different sort of situation. As Holly moaned and humped her hips back against Cika's fingers, which stroked the pretty doe's labia, squeezing those soft, moist, yielding lower lips firmly between her fingertips, Cika gently probed forward, and discovered that Holly's hymen was a great deal thicker than Windspray's, and if she applied too much pressure all at once, the deer's body started to tense up, her expression of pleasure momentarily turning to one of discomfort, though her state of arousal remained constant.

It occurred to Cika that perhaps now was the time for some practical application of what she had been learning from her two mentors.

Instead of taking the route that Tully had taken when he'd first broken Cika's barrier, and the route that most teenagers, inexperienced and overeager, too-often took on their first plunge, Cika instead pressed her short, cute muzzle up against Holly's dripping cunny. Her breath steaming over the white-bottomed hottie's doeparts, Cika was gratified to hear Holly's sweet sounds of pleasure increase in volume, and then increase some more as Cika began a quick dabbing of her tongue in short little licks around the countless tasty pink parts of Holly's outer sex, made possible as Cika spread the deer-girl's outer labia nice and wide, then started a series of long, slow licks into the tender space between outer and inner labia. Then, carefully, being sure to take her time, Cika slowly, gently spread Holly's inner labia, baring the glistening pink barrier that blocked all but incidental access between the young deer's tightly-clenching inner parts, and the outside world.

With slow patience, Cika pressed her muzzle forward, her eyes half-closing in bliss as she suckled on the swollen and so-very-moist treasured places within Holly's cunny, between her vaginal opening and the pearl-pink lips that guarded her treasure. However, even as her ears filled with the gradually-increasing volume of Holly's sounds of rising passion, Cika very, very carefully began to apply the most gentle of pressure to her friend's maidenhead, and then pulled back the moment the deer started to tense, like a four-legged deer might have done in preparation to bolt from a hunter in the brush. Then, her eager nibbling slowly going down to the precious "v" indentation of Holly's mons, carefully circling the other girl's clitoris, avoiding direct contact for now, Cika pressed inward again, and then pulled back...and again...and back, each time pressing in just the tiniest fraction more.

The subject of how she'd lost her virginity had come up after one of the threeway lovemaking sessions between Kanda Har, Saber, and Cika. Cika had explained in great detail how she'd met Tully, and why she'd let him seduce her. As she'd described the red pandaboy's sexual technique, saber had clucked her forked tongue, and Kanda Har had curled his lip slightly, prompting Cika to ask what was the matter.

"He was too fast," explained Kanda Har, giving Saber a glance to make sure she agreed with him, which she did with a slight nod. "Deflowering a femme, that's an easy way to really hurt her. The hymen's a really thick membrane of skin, and there's a lot of blood and nerves in it."

"Just because it's traditional in many cultures for the boy to make the girl hurt on the first time," Saber picked up, "doesn't mean that's the right way to have sex. I suppose, if you're so turned-on you can't see straight, and your legs are too wobbly to let you stand, then it might be all right, but at any other time..."

"Slow and steady," she and Kanda Har said at the same time, sharing a knowing glance.

The two had described their own experiences with deflowering virgins, those that had ended poorly, and those that were far more successful. Saber even shared her own tale of deflowering by her first husband, the vicious warlord of Pash who she'd later poisoned before taking her freedom. He'd been a wicked and brutal man, and he'd enjoyed hearing Saber cry when he'd deflowered her - raped her, really - that first time. Later on, though, she'd come across old manuals that detailed ancient methods for using sex as a form of meditation, and among those ancient tomes, she'd also discovered detailed instructions on how to keep the deflowering of a female from hurting, something the apparently male author of the book felt was a dark blot on the karma. She'd soon taken these teachings to heart, and began to experiment on each new girl that entered the warlord's harem, ensuring that they wouldn't suffer as she had suffered...though Saber admitted with a wicked grin that it wasn't all altruistic: she greatly enjoyed hunting down the innocent little dears and drawing them into her clutches for a thorough and very pleasure-filled ravishing.

Kanda Har, in his turn, shared his own deflowering - by another male. It was Captain Craw, the old crow who'd taken him on as a cabin boy. Up until that point, Kanda Har had a little sexual experience, but he'd been honestly horrified at the pain he'd accidentally caused one of his childhood friends on their mutual first times. The trauma of this unpleasant experience, coupled with seeing her every day in their normal routines, had been one of the many factors that led Kanda Har to take to the first ship that seemed like it would take him aboard. Once on the Blood Raven, Kanda Har soon took to the tasks of cabin boy, and started to learn as much as he could about his new profession as a skysailor. He also grew very close to the captain of the grand old vessel, who, both literally and figuratively, took the young rhino under his wing. It was after Kanda Har had taken part in his first raid as a pirate, and drawn his first blood, taking injuries of his own in the process, that Craw had finally taken the final step, and seduced the eager young cabin boy. Kanda Har had been nervous, though, at first, and he'd poured out the tale of his own first, failed first time. Since then, he'd had a few experiences with the wenches at the ship's many ports of call, but that first failure, and the fear that he could suffer pain like he'd unintentionally caused his childhood friend, troubled him. Craw, though, had been slow, gentle, his gentle side coming out as he'd stroked his long yellow beak down the boy's naked flesh, his black wings feeling so very soft on their undersides as they stroked over Kanda Har, surrounding him like a down-filled comforter.

"He was so careful not to hurt me that first time," said Kanda Har with a nostalgic smile, a far-off look in his eyes. "Captain Craw took the better part of an hour calming me down...and then about half an hour more getting me excited again, until I was about ready to burst at any moment. I've heard other males who've lain with men talk about their first time. Usually it's painful, either during or the day after. It wasn't either with my captain - it just felt good. That's the way the first time_should_ be," he finished with a firm nod.

By this time, Cika was able to very, very carefully squeeze a finger into Holly's clenching-tight cunny, right through one of the tiny perforations in the doe's hymen. Those perforations, thanks to Cika's slow, thoughtful attention, were quite a bit larger now than they had been, and steadily stretching wider all the time. Holly, meantime, was gasping for breath, her tense, strawberry-pink tailbud having gone through several tense contractions, contractions shared by her quim, which gripped suddenly and firmly down on Cika's probing finger, making it hard at times for Cika to keep moving her hand. Cika spared a glance at Holly's face, and it was immediately obvious that the lithe young doe was almost delirious with pleasure, her face taking on a glassy-eyed stare, her eyes heavy-lidded, mouth slightly open to let her better catch her breath between moments of intense contractions of her body.

Daring to push things a little higher, Cika moved her muzzle once more, closing her lips over Holly's clitoris, and started to suckle on that tender, throbbing lovebud, moving her tongue much like she sometimes did to the very tip of Kanda Har's penis. At this point, Holly's bottom was thrust almost straight up into the air, so that Cika looked somewhat as though she were pursing her lips to sip from a drinking fountain as she eagerly began to orally caress Holly's clitty. Then, just as Holly was starting to tense up again, her back arching, gorgeously shapely tushie clenching up, Cika deftly slid a second finger into the writhing doe, making Holly squeal loudly - but not in pain. There was only pleasure registered on the squirming deer's face as Cika twisted her fingers, stretching Holly's hymen until it was quite pliable.

Pulling back, Cika reached down, stroking her strap-on, shivering slightly at the sensation of having the knobbed metal moving inside of her. Her other hand gripped and then stroked the soft-furred crease of Holly's upturned, heart-shaped derriere, and was soon joined by her other hand as Cika fit the tip of the strapon into place at the gates of Holly's heavily-flushed, heavily-leaking cunny. Then, with a soft groan of her own, Cika pushed her hips slowly forward, sinking the solid length of faux-phallus into her friend's quim, watching in fascination as the white-furred outer labia and pink inner labia distorted around the thickness of Cika's worn dildo, parting and then clasping tightly around the smooth metal.

"Ooooh!" Holly cried out, and where formerly her cries had only been just loud enough, even at her most passionate, to be heard by Cika as she leaned close, this one was surely loud enough to be heard from the deck. Cika paused for a moment, fearing she'd hurt her friend, but Holly only braced herself...and then thrust back against Cika until her sweet, heart-shaped tushie slapped against the minkling's hips, making Holly cry out again.

This was finally too much for Cika. She'd been holding herself back for such a long time, restraining herself to keep from doing any harm to her friend, denying the steadily-building lust from her own instincts. Now she was through with being good. Now she was going to just let herself go.

Roughly, almost brutally, Cika ground her hips against Holly's white-furred bottom, churning the phallus inside of her friend with a will until the doe squealed like a newborn fawn, before the minkling drew back, admiring the long, smooth length of glistening metal as it withdrew from Holly, slick with her juices. Then, gritting her teeth, Cika _thrust_forward once more, hard enough to make Holly squeal again, the young doe's whole body convulsing as she was driven to the brink.

There was no holding back now. Cika's hips started to smack Holly's buns, slowly but firmly at first, but rapidly building up speed. Soon, as Holly's pleasures rose to a point that was beyond vocalization, Cika was making the other girl's bottom bounce with each hard, slapping thrust, digging her fingers into the silk-soft fur beneath Holly's tail, showing the sweet, sexy deer no mercy. This, Cika realized, must be how it was for a male, the raw intensity of power that came from being the one in total control of one's partner. This wasn't like those times when she'd set the pace with her lovemaking with Kanda Har - the big rhino let Cika be the one in charge those time. No, Cika was in charge now because she had the power, the dominance over her precious willing victim. Holly had no choice but to submit, to bow down before Cika, rump held high in a form of worship far older than any religion. This was the last fully conscious thought that Cika had as she looked down at Holly's swiftly-reddening rump, before her entire body started to seize up, jerking spasmodically in the throes of her own nigh-overwhelming orgasm, an orgasm so powerful that Cika, eyes wide open, couldn't see a thing for several long moments, her sight only gradually returning as a burst of little flashes of light across her vision.

It was at this point that Cika slumped down on top of Holly, and the two rolled onto their sides, both breathing heavily as they stayed there, pressed tightly together, Saber's borrowed strapon still firmly squeezed to the hilt in Holly's trembling, sopping wet cunny. Both girls were only vaguely of Windspray's gentle, loving wings wrapping around them, covering them like a blanket, letting them finally give in to their exhaustion as they both soon closed their eyes, basking in the relaxing bliss of sweet afterglow.

Windspray stayed like that for a long time, smiling at the two wonderful friends she'd made. Friends, and now more, she realized with a flush of emotion that gave her a twinge deep in her bosom. It was a very good sort of pain, though, and the young albatross accepted it willingly - the pain of friendship deepening to love.

Finally, when she was sure that both Cika and Holly were well and truly asleep, Windspray rose and seated herself on the rim of the wide crow's nest, looking out over the dark horizon with her farseeing eyes. She frowned slightly, then, as she saw something, far, far away, hardly more than a speck in the darkness. A ship, following along on their course. She could only see it, it was so far off, because of the lanterns strung in the rigging to aid in night navigation. Leagues away, perhaps it meant nothing. But then again, perhaps it was something far worse, for, after all, there were pirates in these skies.

Making her decision, Windspray settled on waiting until dawn, when the others would awake (or be awoken, if they proved too tired from their nightly activities), so long as the ship didn't get any closer. Then they could decide as a group what they should do about these unknown interlopers. Windspray suddenly found herself even more grateful for Kanda Har's presence - she knew he was a former pirate himself, and he would surely know what to do in this situation.

Kanda Har looked out over the aft rail on the raised deck, his mechanical eye clicking and whirring softly. All the others were crowded around, the rhino noticing that they all stood much closer together and despite the low-level tenseness of the situation, he couldn't help but smile.

"I can't make out who or what it is at this distance, but I think it's definitely following us," Kanda Har rumbled. He turned and looked over the prow. "And we're two hours out from Stormhaven."

As if verifying the reason the town got its name, a huge column of dark grey clouds to the port side of the clipper flashed with lightning, the ambient illumination so deep within the clouds that it looked purple though was still too far off to hear.

Windspray nodded. "I think I'd like to put into port soonest."

Lifting his head, both his real and mechanical eye scanning the sky, Kanda Har grinned. "A little more sail wouldn't be a bad thing." He gave the albatrossfemme a small hug. "Take the wheel while the rest of us run out more canvas."

Without waiting for any more instruction, the others bolted for the rigging and partially reefed sails, Cika and Saber scrambling up while Candi and Holly started to work on the lines that ran to the different belay points along the deck. Kanda Har, a little surprised at how fast the others took to the task stepped down to the main deck, looking at the work being done and pointing out recommendations. Soon there was more sail billowing from the mast and the outriggers that looked like giant wings and the speed the little clipper was managing increased noticeably. Once her task was done, Cika rejoined her mate, smiling as she normally did whenever the minkteen took his callused hand, though there was a tightness about the expression.

"Don't worry, sweetling," the rhino rumbled softly. "These little clippers will surprise you. One of the better skyboats to weather a storm in and a bit faster than you might think."

Cika nuzzled the ropy, muscled forearm she had a hold of, placing a kiss in the palm of the rhinomale's huge hand. "You know, I don't think I worry about a lot of the stuff I used to," she said softly. "Not with you around...and not with the others, too." The weaselkin looked up with bright eyes. "When I'm next to you, I feel like we can beat anything or anyone."

No sooner did Windspray deftly guide her little clipper to the mooring of the sky jetty then the storm finally released a torrent of wind and rain while the others made fast the mooring lines. The crew had donned their clothing, Cika perhaps the most reluctant, finding the feeling of unfettered fur to be rather liberating and the light skirt and wrap top oddly confining. She added her soft boots and had accepted one of Windspray's raincloaks for their foray into the town of Stormhaven.

The others were waiting for her at the foot of the gangplank, Candi having volunteered to stay onboard as a watch, though the hippofemme in truth was a little uncomfortable with crowds in strange ports and wanted to use the time to also put together a list of supplies for her galley. Holly went with Windspray, Saber following along as the albatrossfemme headed to a buyer for the little boat's haul from skyfishing, and Kanda Har led Cika to the shopping plaza.

The rhino chuckled when he felt the minkling stop and paused to look down before turning his gaze at where she was staring. "Look Kanda Har!" the weaselkin said softly, a glimmer of longing in her dark eyes. "She's beautiful!"

"She does have nice lines," the rhino commented appreciatively.

Almost drooling, Cika moved closer to the edge of the dock and let her eyes roam over the sky sloop. Everything about the vessel cried speed and strength, the wing like sails more advanced than what was on Windspray's little clipper, the lateen shape and swept back spars designed so that with a little crafty piloting the vessel could actually tack into the wind. Her hull was almost twice as wide and long as the clipper, the seams tight with good caulk and fresh paint of blue and yellow with black trim. The aft was dominated by a large, wide series of windows that had a sort of balcony running below it and nozzles for actual engines on either side of the streamlined rudder assembly.

"And available if you want," a deep voice that had a gravelly, grating edge to it said from behind them. "The Sapphire Lady be a fine ship and been my home for nigh on twenty years."

Cika and Kanda Har turned to find an elephant looking at them with an easy smile. Like Kanda Har, the elephant had seen his share of trials and hard living. Most of one large ear was missing, barely enough left to hold the two ponderously heavy gold earrings that Cika could have almost put around her waist. He had several scars running up and down his trunk, his left tusk was missing and the one on the right was half the length it should be with a cap of gold on the end.

Because of the elephant's age and weather-worn skin, even a friendly expression was a little on the harsh side and in response Cika's grip on Kanda Har's hand tightened noticeably, though she stood her ground. "You're selling it?" the minkfemme asked with surprise.

The elephant took a step forward, even that much movement obviously uncomfortable and he leaned heavily on a walking stick of gnarled gankowood, the lumber from that tree almost as hard as steel. "Twenty five bar o' silver an' she's yours. I found I don't take to weather changes so well anymore," the bull said easily. "Life of chasin' pirates has finally taken its toll upon me old bones," he said with a wink to Cika and a jaunty grin tossed at Kanda Har. "Harcourt Janus, at yer service," the elephant added with a nod.

"Harry, why do you have to lie to these good people?" a younger, slightly higher pitched voice said from behind the elephant.

Looking at the awning that kept the speaker out of the rain, the mink and rhino both looked to where a young skunkmale that had patterns of blue and red mixed slapdash where the distinct black and white fur of his coat met.

"You never chased pirates, and you get airsick anytime you go out on a sky dory, much less a real vessel! Tell them the truth in that you won the thing in a card game after fleecing the badger that owned her!"

The skunk's tone was slightly insolent, but there was a merry twinkle in his eyes. He slid off the canvas covered crates he was lounging on and stepped to the edge where rain still fell from the edges of his shelter. He wore loose linen trousers, no shoes, with a sleeveless open necked shirt that gave a fair indication that, while young, he was leanly-muscled.

"Harry was in a small cargo handling mishap, though he was correct in that weather changes add to his limp!" The skunk gave a rather flourished bow to the strange couple. "Cinnabar Blanc at your service. Though I will say that the Sapphire Lady is a rather good ship as I used to crew on her, but I wouldn't recommend more than twenty silver for her as she's in dire need of new canvas and could use a bit of work on the inside, what with all us sloppy bachelors on her. Unfortunately it was my Captain that lost her in said card game to Harry here, leaving myself and a few others stranded whilst he laments at the loss of not only his vessel, but his sobriety."

"You wound me, boy," the elephant said with an exaggerated look of pain and discomfort with a huge hand placed over his heart. Then Harcourt heaved a great sigh. "But my story was a good one, right?"

Kanda Har snorted while Cika giggled lightly. "Maybe you should write stories, Mister Janus," she suggested.

"The very thing I recommended myself!" Cinnabar agreed with a warm smile.

"We'll consider it," Kanda Har said as he steered the minkling on his arm back down the lane.

The proprietor of a jewelry shop was more than happy to sell Cika a selection of pretties for the rest of Windspray's crew after affixing two new silver earrings in Cika's ears. Another was also obsequious to the perusal of his selection of blades and pistols, showing things that were well suited for the weaselkin's size and met with Kanda Har's approval in quality, the rhino even getting them a substantial discount when he pointed out that the first sword that was showed to his mate was little more than shiny pot metal and would have broken the first time she drew it in battle, though she did find a rather nice repeater pistol for her lover. Looking at the contents of the lighter purse, Cika followed Kanda Har back in the direction of the docks.

"I wonder if Windspray would be upset if we purchased the Sapphire Lady?" she mused winsomely.

Kanda Har rumbled a deep, amused laugh. "I blame myself for this," he said with a wink of his good eye. "I went and got you all sorts of hooked on plying the high skies! Danger, storms, peril at near every turn we make..."

Cika leapt up and wrapped her arms around the rhino's neck, silencing him with a deep, warm kiss. "And I've loved every moment of it! There's no one I'd rather share any of this with then you! Well, and the others, too!"

The rain had finally abated and as Kanda Har set Cika back onto the cobblestone street that fronted the docks the pair were bathed in the deep red of the slowly sinking sun, turning the moment into one those that had the rhino wondering at the turn his life had taken. After Cika kissed him again, the kind that was deep and languorous with her wiggling happily against him and had the effect of making him wish for a little more privacy, they continued on to the little clipper where the other ladies watched the final offload of the holds and the catch of fish.

"There you two are!" Windspray chortled happily, giving the pair a warm hug, her feathered arms and hands trailing affectionately over both her friends. "We were wondering where you'd gotten off to!"

As the group made their way to the gangplank, a familiar voice stopped them. "Begging your pardon, but might I impose for a few minutes of your time?"

All of them turned to see a young skunk, Kanda Har and Cika a little surprised that the one calling himself Cinnabar Blanc was just at the edge of the jetty, a hopeful look in his eyes.

"While I must say that serving with Captain Surl has been a most...educational um, experience, I'm finding that I'm not overly fond of my present land-locked state," the skunk said as he looked at Kanda Har with an honest and pained expression. "I was wondering, if it isn't too much of an imposition, I might inquire of any possible openings in this crew, good Sir?"

Kanda Har rumbled with a deep belly laugh. "You can inquire until the morning, but I'm not the captain of this vessel, boy. You'll be wanting to talk to Captain Windspray, here," the rhino replied with a gesture to the albatrossfemme.

Cinnabar looked confused. "But...you...the Sapphire Lady. I thought..." The skunk looked at the various ladies of the clipper and a twinkle settled in his dark eyes. "Milady Captain, I'm a hard worker, a decent sailor, and I am more than willing to take a place as your scullery boy or bilge rat if you'd have me! Just so long as I could put this forsaken raincatch of an island behind me!" The others watched as he dropped to his knees. "Please, whatever position you may have for myself, I will be more than happy to accept! I'm tired of being rented out to keep my former Captain in enough coin to get sotted with grog every waking hour, and will do anything you ask of me!"

"I have a few positions he would do well in!" Saber whispered with a wicked grin.

Candi returned with Holly and Cika helping with parcels, her quick sojourn to a shop that sold provisions having yielded quite a bit for her task of restocking the galley and watched as the minkling gifted her mate with a good bottle of rum, telling the rhino it was a present from all of them while he sat with Windspray and the skunk at the galley table.

Kanda Har had told Windspray of the sloop, his and Cika's meeting with the young skunkmale, and everything else that had transpired, though whether or not to accept the offer of the sloop Sapphire Lady and the petition of Cinnabar he left to the birdgirl.

"It's your ship if you want, Windspray, and your call," Cika said with a hug to the albatross, kissing her soundly before taking a seat next to her mate and worming under his arm as he looked at the bottle he'd been given with a smile. "You know that with...well, where we're going, you won't have to fish ever again, and you can just sail a course set as your heart desires."

"But why?" Windspray inquired with wide-eyed surprise and disbelief.

"Because I love all of you," the mink said with a somber expression before her eyes started to seep large, glistening tears. "For the first time in my life I feel like I have a real family and I want to make all of you as happy as I am."

Cinnabar had been left sitting on the dock while Windspray and the others went aboard her little clipper to consider their options. It wasn't in Windspray's nature to name ships, and so hers had gone without one for the years she'd had it. It wasn't an especially nice ship, it was true, and in fact it was rather small and cramped, and growing smaller all the time, considering the number of people on board now. After some careful consideration and consultation, Windspray finally decided that getting the sloop would be a good idea. There was, however, one problem which Windspray and the others immediately recognized: they would need an even larger crew.

This, of course, was a good segue into the question of Cinnabar Blanc, the skunkmale even then seated on an old rain barrel, looking hopefully up the gangplank where the five femmes and one male were considering his fate. Through all of this, Kanda Har had remained slightly detached, his mechanical eye turned toward the skunk, taking note of the light blue fur that was barely visible in the margin where his white fur met the black. It was obvious that he was studying the other male very, very closely.

"He's not going to come alone," said Kanda Har during a lull in the conversation. "I can tell already that he's got a few of his fellow shipmates that will come along with him, if we'll have them. Mister Blanc there is the scout, to see how receptive we are to taking on additional crew."

"This is all so new to me," admitted Windspray. "It's easier with girls," she added with a long sigh. "Men...well, they're complicated, and kind of scary. I knew we could use some extra help on board the new sloop, but at the same time...is Cinnabar someone we want to join us?"

The memory of Tully lingered in the minds of Windspray, Holly, Candi, and Saber. Windspray's kind heart just couldn't turn the boy away, but when he'd shown his true colors, it had come as such a shock to the poor white bird. That feeling of betrayal lingered still, and it left Windspray feeling unsure of herself. Cika gently came up behind her friend and wrapped her arms around Windspray's waist, while Candi gently hugged the soft-feathered girl from the side, their combined presence making the birdgirl quickly start to relax, the worried expression on her face that had been forming almost immediately vanishing.

Then all eyes turned to Kanda Har, who chuckled at the unspoken question. It was obvious to everyone there that, of them all, there was only one among them who'd had real experience with selecting a crew.

"What if I'm right, and he's got friends he wants to bring along?" the clockwork rhino asked, quietly accepting the job without objection. "Should I stick to just him?"

"I guess if they seem trustworthy," said Windspray after some thought, her wings wrapping around Candi (Cika being out of her reach, of course).

"And if they're hot!" added Cika, before she started giggling at the shocked looks and deep blushes from her three more innocent friends, and the raised eyebrows of Kanda Har and Saber, though both of them were obviously amused.

"It's like picking out a child for adoption," Kanda Har muttered to himself as he gave the girls on board a slight nod and turned to descend the gangplank. As soon as he drew near, Cinnabar hopped to his feet, his fluffy striped skunktail fairly quivering with eagerness to hear what had been decided, though he barely restrained himself from saying anything as soon as he saw the rhino's serious expression.

"Who else besides you is wanting a berth on our ship?" asked the rhino, deliberately drawing close to the handsome, lightly-muscled skunkmale, letting him loom over the potential recruit with an intimidating presence. "Don't play innocent with me," he added when Cinnabar momentarily stammered in surprise at the question.

"Just...just two friends," Cinnabar finally admitted, looking down, obviously a little sheepish. "But they're good friends, and true sky sailors, I promise!" he added, looking up once more with determination.

"I'll be the judge of that," Kanda Har said with a steely gaze that made the younger skunk soon start to squirm. "Just like I'll be the judge of you. Captain Windspray's sent me to ascertain your fitness for service on her crew. We're a fairly small group, and very close-knit. In close quarters like those on board Windspray's ship, whatever it may be, there's little real privacy, and no need for secrets or hidden agendas. You're either going to open yourself up to us, or you're not going to fit in. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," replied Cinnabar, obviously slightly intimidated by the towering, ominous presence of the rhino.

"Good," answered Kanda Har, and quite suddenly his stance relaxed, and he took a step back from Cinnabar, letting the skunk relax as well. "C'mon, take me to where your friends are. I'll conduct your interviews together."

Glancing over his shoulder at the ship, Kanda Har gave a nod to Cika, whose eyes he easily caught as she looked out at him from the deck. With a slight, sly smile of her own, the lithe little mink slid smoothly down the line tying the clipper to the dock, and began to quietly follow after Kanda Har as he followed Cinnabar Blanc into the streets of Stormhaven's port district. If there was one thing Cika knew how to do without any training from Kanda Har or Saber, it was to remain unseen in an urban environment.

It wasn't a very long trip, really, before the skunk stepped up to the door of a two-story flophouse, and pushed open the door.

"Second floor," he said with a slightly embarrassed look at Kanda Har, obviously not proud of his present quarters. As Kanda Har kept pace with Cinnbar, Cika, meanwhile, skirted around to the alley of the flophouse, and quickly shimmied up a drainpipe, making her way around the ledge of the second floor, peeking into two windows before she found the one where Cinnabar was just opening the door, the window to the room shielded by wooden slats, but otherwise wide open, making it not too hard for Cika to look in without being seen. She understood well that she was there to act as Kanda Har's backup, just in case of emergencies, and so she quietly loosened the small dagger she'd slipped into her belt when she'd dressed that morning, right before they docked. If anything happened, she'd be ready.

The room before Kanda Har as he followed behind the skunk was slightly dim because of the slats in the window, but this didn't cause his mechanical eye any problems, and after his good eye adjusted, he didn't have any problems at all. There in the room were two other males, their bodies having the lean look of sky sailors that have been landlocked for a little too long, their faces carrying that sense of desperation that comes from being denied the thing one loves most in life. It was easy to tell that Cinnabar Blanc wasn't lying, and immediately Kanda Har let himself relax slightly. This wasn't going to be an ambush - it was just a job interview.

Seated near the window, his right leg propped up on an overstuffed ottoman, was a stately elk with well-manicured antlers and finely-sculpted facial features, complete with high cheekbones, his body obviously well-muscled beneath the regulation white shirt and blue trousers he wore. The uniform as well as the slightly stiff carriage of the elk immediately marked him as a former officer in the navy of Burgess, one of the largest and best-trained navies to sail the skies, and Kanda Har, bearing injuries himself, could tell that the elk had lost his commission because of injury, his raised right leg the most likely culprit. As Kanda Har took the measure of the elk, the elk similarly gave Kanda Har a looking over with eyes that were a cold ice blue. Nearby, he could see a black leather belt with a bright brass buckle hanging from the back of the room's second (and only other) chair, on which were hung a long naval dirk and a gearwork pistol, both obviously in scrupulously-kept condition.

Lounging on the single bed in the room was a lean and lanky otter dressed in a pair of loose red jams, his shock of red hair obviously seldom-combed, the bangs falling down in front of the lithe male's dark eyes, which had opened sleepily when the door to the room had opened, and were now regarding the rhino with sleepy curiosity. On the wall near the bed, within easy reach of the otter's arm, was a winged skyboard, a single person craft that could allow for astonishingly swift sky surfing. This board showed signs of great care, and equally great use, as even the layers of wax and polish couldn't hide the numerous little scuffs and scrapes it had endured, marking its user - likely the lounging otter - as one who took the skill of sky surfing very seriously. Also hanging from the wall near the skyboard was a barbed fishing harpoon, and a light diver's knife, many holes punched in the bright metal to reduce its weight.

"Um, Tuck, Skim," Cinnabar said with a slight stammer of uncertainty as he looked at the elk and the otter as he said their names, and then glanced back at the rhino behind him, "this is Kanda Har. He's been sent by his captain to see if we're the kind of crew they want."

That got the attention of the two males. Tuck, the tall and stately elk, rose to his feet with a steady dignity that nevertheless failed to conceal his obvious eagerness at the mention of recruitment. The otter was less hasty in his movements as he slowly yawned, stretching and then scratching himself before he sat up and slung his legs over the side of the bed, but it was obvious to Kanda Har that the otter wasn't likely to have given up his naptime for anything that he didn't deem important, and so he took Slim's casualness in due stride.

"Captain Windspray plans on buying that sloop I understand you both used to serve on," Kanda Har said, laying aside formalities as he saw how eager the three potential recruits were. "We're going to need to add a few more members to our crew, though, to handle the larger vessel. But we're also a small group, and used to having an informal sort of setting. If you feel like you need to take orders,' he glanced meaningfully at the elk, Tuck, knowing the tendencies of Burgess naval men, "take them from me or from Captain Windspray. Otherwise, we're about as loosely organized as you could want. We each have a job, and we do it, and we help each other out as much as we can when our jobs are done. That's about the extent of it. Now," he looked at the three males in the room, "tell me a little about yourselves, what you can offer to our crew. That's the first thing I need to know before I'll hire you."

"Former Leftenant Philamus Tucker, at your service," said the elk with a pleasant, formal baritone that suited his formal appearance well. "Late of the Burgess Royal Navy. I was discharged after injuries sustained in the line of duty, fighting pirates." The elk's expression briefly showed a twinge of regret as he glanced toward his right knee, which was covered by his blue naval trousers. "Sadly, His Majesty's retirement plan for discharged officers is somewhat lacking, and my family has little use for an injured third son, leaving me somewhat at a loss." Then his bearing became firm and immovable once more. "Despite my injury, I have four years experience on the skies, two as an officer of His Majesty's Navy, and two more serving alongside Mister Blanc here in the merchant marine, which I feel proves my suitability for further service. If I must, I am also skilled with the common run of weapons for ship-to-ship combat," the elk's ice blue eyes glanced toward the black belt with its dirk and pistol, "and am also a skilled gunner should you have access to cannon."

"None of those, I'm afraid," said Kanda Har with a slight smirk, before turning his attention to the otter, who remained seated, though he had brushed his mop of red hair out of the way of his eyes. "What about you?"

"I'm Slim," explained the slim, long-bodied otter with a sleepy-looking smile that Kanda Har could tell concealed an enthusiastic energy; the otter had simply been interrupted from his nap, and was a slow riser. "Just Slim. I got tired of fishing off the coast of Ominus, and decided to join the merchant marine with my good buddy Cinnabar. My usual job's to use my skyboard there," he motioned with his head toward the well-waxed board, " to scout around, see how the skies lie, and sometimes do some fishing off the side. I'm good at the job, but mostly I do it 'cause it's fun, and 'cause I'm watching out for my friend, Cinnabar," he gave the skunk a wink at this. "Silly skunkboy's always trying to get ahead, lead a life of adventure and stuff like that."

Kanda Har glanced at Cinnabar, who blushed at his friend's words, but didn't deny them. The rhino then shrugged, his mechanical eye whirring as he folded his arms, resting the metal arm on top, and then regarded the three males before him in the room.

"I have one more requirement before I'm willing to let you come aboard as crew," he said seriously, catching the eyes of the three males and holding their gazes until they each looked away, silently recognizing him as their superior. "I want each of you to strip naked. Here and now."

"What?" exclaimed Tuck with a look of shock. "You can't be serious."

"I'm serious," said the rhino with a slight smirk, before he reached down to his own belt. "In fact, I'll start."

"B-but what purpose could this possibly...?" Tuck stammered, his eyes widening as Kanda Har casually dropped his trousers and kicked them aside, leaving him wearing only his boots and greatcoat. The greatcoat soon joined the pants as Kanda Har draped them over the chair where the elk's weapon belt was slung. The three other males in the room - and Cika herself - stared at the towering rhino, who stood, unashamed, before them. Not that he had much of which to be ashamed, as his muscular, scarred body was nothing more nor less than what he'd earned over the course of his life, each scar telling a part of the story that wove the tapestry of his adventurous life.

"It's a requirement," said Kanda Har as he folded his arms once more after idly adjusting his low-hanging, uncircumcised length and full sac. "That's all you need to know. Take it or leave it."

"Takin' it," said Slim without hesitation, bending over to shuck off his shorts and toss them aside with a flick of his thick rudderlike tail. Cika, peering in through the slatted window, was able to easily admire the sleek-bodied male's form, his trim-muscled swimmer's build making him actually pretty hot.

His cheeks flushing a bit more, the pink showing clearly through the white-furred parts of his face, Cinnabar was next to peel his shirt up over his head, and then push his trousers down his legs. When he set the pants aside, Cika had to admit that the skunkboy was even hotter than his otter friend, his body lightly muscled, making a neat, masculine 'v' from his waist to his shoulders. Mmm, and now that the peeping minkling was looking a little closer...oh my, but that skunk was well-hung. It was hidden in his sheath (mostly) right then, but that white-furred sheath and plump sac were definitely pretty nicely-sized. Nowhere near Kanda Har's free-hanging heftiness, of course, but definitely nice.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Tuck muttered to himself as he unbuttoned his white naval shirt and slid it off his arms, hanging it neatly on a peg on the wall, revealing his very muscular chest and the solid eightpack beneath, the obvious product of a life of intense and deliberate physical training, rather than the smooth, flat belly of the otter that came from a life of surfing and other forms of athletic fun, or the trim, neat sixpack of Cinnabar Blanc, which resulted more from constant hard work. "In all my years of naval service..."

"Four years worth," Kanda Har reminded the elk with a grin, admiring the antlered male's body as he finished stripping off his trousers. "That's enough to make you a veteran, but not enough for you to be considered an old salt. Not yet."

Cika could tell right away why Kanda Har admired the tall male's body so: Tuck was gorgeous! Of the three, though Cinnabar has a really hot butt, complete with a teasing "treasure tail" of white fur that framed the inside part of his buttocks, and Slim's buns were pretty sweet as well, firmly rounded and almost feminine in appearance, Tuck's were honestly beautiful in a hard, square-cut, masculine sort of way. Statuesque, that was the word that came to Cika's mind, along with memories of some of the bronze statues of naked guys that she'd occasionally seen around Highloft while growing up, on those rare occasions when she'd slipped into the homes of the idle rich for a little looksee. His rumpfur was a lighter color, too, than the deep, rich brown of the rest of his neatly-groomed body, throwing his bottom into clear relief, as well as the rather significant sac that dangled between his legs. Cika tilted her head slightly, getting a glimpse of the elk's sheath, but only a glimpse, the angle just not right for a good view of either Tuck or Slim's goodies. All the same, that glimpse was quite enough to make Cika bite her lower lip...before her eyes lifted, and looked straight into Kanda Har's.

For a long moment, Cika crouched there on the window ledge, frozen by the gaze of her mate. What must he think of her, checking out these other males, and right in front of him, too? The blood rushed to Cika's cheeks in her sudden shame...shame that soon faded as her eyes glanced a little lower, to the teasing smirk on the big lug's face. The sneak! He'd meant for her to see these males in their altogethers! And it was pretty obvious he didn't mind her looking at all...actually, Cika suddenly realized that he was wanting her to check them out like she'd been doing, to see if they were, for lack of a better word, 'acceptable.' Her expression told her feelings on the subject quite clearly. All of this was conveyed between Cika and Kanda Har in the most subtle of body language, quickly and intuitively. Immediately, Kanda Har knew what to do.

"I think the three of you pass inspection," said Kanda Har, casually reaching over to cup Cinnabar's plump, soft white balls, making the skunk shiver slightly, his eyes widening as he gave a soft gasp, but didn't pull away. Tuck gaped in shock at this open display of male-on-male interest, obviously completely unsure how to react, while Slim...was Slim, a little bit of peeking pink showing his interest, while his expression remained mild and pleasant, his red hair dropping back in front of his eyes to conceal where exactly his eyes were looking. "Yes, very nicely indeed. I'll give Captain Windspray my recommendation. You can report to the sloop tomorrow morning. As long as nothing else changes, you have yourselves a commission." Then Kanda Har's expression turned serious. "If you want it, that is." He raised his metal hand to stop the quick-coming protest of the skunk, and the slightly slower words of the elk. "Understand this: if you sign on with us, you'll probably be facing danger, and threats to your lives. There are people following us with a vendetta, some of them pirates."

Pirates. The word made even the casual and perpetually-relaxed otter Slim look slightly nervous, his dark brown eyes peering out from under his mop of red hair and trade a glance with Cinnabar that clearly asked the question 'are you sure about this?' in that way only close friends can share a conversation with minimal words, much as Kanda Har and Cika had just done. Tuck, however, didn't pause for an instant.

"If it's pirates you're facing, Kanda Har," the elk said with a proud bearing, his back straightening, bum tensing as he went to attention, "I'm your man. It was pirates that got me in the leg, and I'd be happy to trade more bullets with them to even that score a bit."

The tall, muscular elk's show of bravery proved infectious, and Slim, who'd been a bit nervous, seemed to calm somewhat, while Cinnabar, who'd been nervous as well, but also looked like he'd been screwing up his courage to press forward, found his voice once more.

"I don't know why pirates are chasing you," said Cinnabar, "and I guess I don't really need to know. But whatever the reason, I think we're all with you, through thick or thin."

"You'll find out once we're out in the sky again," said Kanda Har with a smile, before he picked up his trousers and stuck his legs back into them. "As I said before, Cinnabar, there isn't any room for secrets on board our ship. But some secrets," he continued, tugging his greatcoat over his arms, "aren't fit for shore." Adjusting his clothes properly, the rhino turned, pulling open the door. "If you still feel that way in the morning, we'll see you at first light on the docks. Try to get a good night's sleep before then."

When Kanda Har was several blocks away from the flophouse where the three new crewmen waited, Cika lightly dropped from the rooftops where she'd been following him, and landed on a rainbarrel next to her mate, before lightly hopping up onto his shoulders. Kanda Har, having been given fair warning by Cika's drop onto the barrel, simply ducked slightly, and then rose up, letting Cika tuck her legs around his shoulders quite firmly, letting her get a good position for a ride.

"What do you think, Cika?" asked the big rhino as he made his way back to the docks.

"I think we're getting a bigger boat," said Cika with a giggle, before she blushed. "And I think you've got the strangest recruiting methods I've ever seen. Not that I mind, though."

"There's method to my madness," said Kanda Har, bouncing slightly to give Cika a better "horsey ride" as he walked. "For one, I just got a chance to give those three a good physical looking-over, to see if they were fit for service. For another, it let me see if they would follow orders. Besides that, I got to see them at their most exposed, and how they'd react in the presence of nudity, which I expect will remain common on board Windspray's ship."

"Even if it's mostly naked girls," Cika teased, bending over to kiss the tip of Kanda Har's horn, for which he slowed his gait slightly, so as not to jab her.

"Which is why I had to see if they'd follow orders," Kanda Har said with a nod of agreement. "That means they're very likely to take no for an answer, if it comes to that. Finally, I had to see if you liked them." He grinned at the light smack Cika gave the top of his head. "I'm serious: those three will probably end up having sex with whoever will have them, myself included. It's just a part of our new family's relationship, one of the ways we show love, and let that love grow. They're going to need to fit in somehow, and it'll go a lot easier if you don't mind the thought of having sex with them yourself."

"Aw, but what about your nookie?" asked Cika, half-seriously. "Aren't you bothered about having to share?"

"We talked about this before, Cika," Kanda Har replied with a chuckle. "You know I'm not the jealous type...unless you want me to be, of course. Besides," the rhino winced in mock seriousness, "you girls have almost worn me out."

Cika giggled so hard at that, she almost fell right off Kanda Har's shoulders, requiring him to reach up to hold her steady.

"Come on, silly girl," said Kanda Har with a gentle smile, pulling Cika down into his big arms, cradling her there as he neared the docks and Windspray's ship. "We have a new ship to buy."