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A Pleasure Doing Business

It wasn't easy being a low-born redsmith in the Green Reach, much less being the wife of one. In the Green Reach, metalwork had strict hierarchical castes, just like everywhere else in the region. One was born into their trade, and were strictly forbidden from engaging in the trades of higher or lower castes. Those who refined and worked with gold, silver, platinum, and the like, known as finesmiths, were regarded with outright reverence by the wealthy lords and petty kings who wore their work. Next were the blacksmiths, whose trade dealt in coarser, less noble materials such as bronze, brass, iron and steel, crafting tools and weapons and other such things. While not revered, they were respected and praised for their hard work.

Then, there were the other smiths, for the other metals, the common metals. Redsmiths worked with copper and tin, but not the more noble alloy of bronze, minting base coins and marked ingots for trade, crafting pipes and pots and pans, or making simple, cheap jewelry for commoners. Work with copper, paid with copper, same as it ever was. Only the graysmiths, those who worked with lead and mercury, were lower in status, destined to die young, twitching and mad as a scav's quim.

But that was in the Green Reach. Word had spread of a passage through the towering and treacherous Indrel Mountains, funded by a venerable and powerful Eastern citystate. Upon hearing of this opportunity, many pigeonholed peoples in the Green Reach set out for Val Salia, far away from the hunters of each citystate seeking to retrieve caste-breakers.

Melina Tin-Opal sighed as she tromped through the knee-high water at the shoulder of the river, her skirt hiked up about her waist, a scoop in one hand and a sluice in the other. She was a short woman, somewhat under five feet tall despite her 25 years, but her height only served to pronounce her endowments, her generous bosom propped up by a tightly laced bodice, her bunched up skirt easily perched atop her wide, broad hips. She easily bore the weight of the laden satchel on her hip, her midsection was solid, trim, her arms and legs lean and toned from manning the forge bellows. Her skin was pale, lightly dusted with freckles, her curly strawberry blonde hair would have spilled down to the freckled shelf of her impressive cleavage were it not tied back in a loose bun.

She scooped a measure of muck and rocks into the multi-layered sluice and shook it in the water, washing away the mud and silt and separating the larger stones from the more useful small ones. She discarded the larger pieces and ran her hand through the smaller ones. Most were just simple stones, mottled and gray, smoothed and round from the river waters, but others were pleasingly banded, with inlays of glinting pink quartz that sparkled in the sun. She picked out the prettiest stones and put them in the satchel on her his, discarding the rest before resuming. The river was swift, but not rapid, perfect for polishing stones and disinterring finer materials.

Melina sat down on the rocky riverbank, grunting as she set the laden satchel down between her red, half-frozen legs, going over her haul as she warmed herself in the summer sun. A decent haul, polished stones with pleasant banding, mostly, but among them were tantalizingly large chunks of jasper, malachite, sugilite and amethyst, with more and more appearing the further up the river she went. Many of the stones she had found she would grind down, shape and polish, before giving them to her husband to inlay in the various copper rings, bracelets, and necklaces he had made. The prettier the stone, the more likely it was that a caravaner or tradesman would purchase the polished copper bauble.

Her family, bearing the surname that translated to 'Opal', had been jewelers by trade, and lower-middle by caste, permitted to only work with semi-precious stones. As such, she was well versed in the various methods of locating, sourcing, and working the sort of hard, shiny pebbles that would inevitably find themselves inlaid in lower-end jewelry.

She looked down the river, to the weigh station known as Camp Friendly, an extended smattering of wooden structures that, in the right light, might resemble a town one day. Hardly the metropolis she had envisioned when they'd first set out. Even here, some two kilometers away, she could make out the basic hovel that served as their home here, built from their disassembled wagon and whatever spare wood they could buy. It had been six months since her husband, Huck Tin-Opal, had uprooted their droll but comfortable life in Ymir to chase a dream of freedom and wealth in Val Salia. Huck was a friendly man, a gentle man – too gentle, her family would grumble – and excitable in a way that bordered on impulsive. When something caught his fancy, he would pursue it with dogged determination, often at the expense of common sense and prudence.

They'd run out of supplies around half-way through the mountains, Huck having apparently failed to consider that supply depots along the way could very well set whatever price they saw fit. They had been forced to set up shop at Camp Friendly, scraping by doing odd jobs and basic metalwork for the caravans that trundled through. After a few months, they had accrued enough wood to reliably fuel their forge, allowing Huck to practice what could be considered his one true gift: jewelry. From little more than a stolen glance, he could replicate the richest, most complex designs and commit them to copper and tin, expertly and quickly hammering and extruding the malleable metal into exquisite shapes. In place of gold filament he polished the copper to a mirror finish, hammering tin so thin and fine it looked like sterling silver. In place of gemstones, these imitations would bear river rocks and semi-precious stones, each carved and polished until they shone. Despite his feckless and inane behavior, once Huck got his hands on copper, the money surely followed.

Melina smiled as she examined her stones, feeling the grain and weight of them. Once she'd ground, carved, and polished them, Huck's newest set of jewelry would be ready to sell. If this kept up, it wouldn't be long before they could once again afford to move on to Val Salia. She looked around, at the green valley stretching into the distance, the swift, cold river running through it, and the tall, sheer mountains on either side, pale and sharp like massive teeth. Despite her husband's foolishness stranding them out here, almost destitute and living in a shed built from a wagon, Melina would freely admit that this valley was beautiful, idyllic, and calm, a far cry from the filthy, bustling streets of Ymir's third district, where lower middle-castes were obliged to live. Out here, no one cared that she was middle-caste, a redsmith's wife. All the people rolling through were from elsewhere and heading elsewhere, hardly concerned with who had been what before setting foot on the road. She found herself wondering what sort of life she and Huck would have in Val Salia, whether or not Huck, with his impulsive imagination ungoverned by his caste, would see them into comfort and luxury, or destitution and ruin. Only time would tell.

A muted 'clack' drew her from her concerns. She turned her head to see a small blue lump sitting on the ground next to the rock she was sitting on. Melina gasped and reached down, her green eyes wide. In her hand was a lump of lapis-lazuli the size of a plum! She turned it over in her hand, marveling at its beauty, the depth and evenness of the blue, broken up with glittering bands of fool's gold. Any half-assed trinket Huck could make in an hour would fetch silver with a carved, polished nugget of lapis-lazuli as the centerpiece, to say nothing of the lavish set he was ready to sell!

But where did it come from? She turned the stone over in her hand, it was coarse, jagged, like it had been quarried. She looked about at the stones around it, all had been deposited by the river during the seasonal floods, all were smooth and round and polished. A stone clattered somewhere, nearby, from behind the scattered boulders. Melina shot to her feet, looking around.

“Hello?" She called out. “Is someone there?"

She waited and listened. Nothing. No sound save for the distant song of birds and insects and the soft rumble of the running river. At that moment Melina considered that perhaps venturing this far from Camp Friendly had been a bad idea, ruefully noting that, like her husband, once she focused on a task she would heedlessly follow wherever it led her, like a tiplod waddling after a carrot. Now she was out here, well out of earshot of anyone who would come to her aid and, worse yet, possibly not alone.

“I'd say we're done out here, Mel…" She muttered aloud, gathering her things, slipping on her shoes, and hurrying off back to Camp Friendly, failing to notice when a hand-sewn hanky fell from her waistband.

Once she was well away down the river, the rocks clattered once more, a shadow slowly falling over the discarded hanky.

Back at their 'house', which consisted of a single-room with a narrow bed on one side, a barrel-and plank, table in the middle, and brick kiln on the far side. The kiln, which served as their hearth, heating the bare wooden planks of their walls, also served as their crucible for the outside workstation, melting copper and tin or heating pieces to soften them. Inside, Melina sat across the table from her husband, Huck. He was a small man, perhaps 5'6, and slight of build, with blonde hair and a rounded, hairless face that made him seem younger than his 30 years. In his slender, elegant hands was the golden-speckled blue rock.

“King Ymir's balls!" Huck hissed, boyish brown eyes wide as he boggled at the chunk of lapis lazuli. “That's enough lapis for six whole sets! Where'd you find it?"

“Up river, near the cataract," said Melina, sipping an ale and taking a bite of sourdough. “The faster water there means smoother stones."

Huck blinked and turned to her. “The cataract?"

Part of her waited for him to scold her, to reprimand her for straying so far from camp alone in the untamed wilderness where there could be wild animals or bandits or other such dangers, but she knew the second he turned back to the chunk of lapis what his response would be.

“What else did you find?"

Melina sighed internally and set the satchel down, spreading the collection of rounded riverstones down on the barrel that served as their table. He pored over them, cooing at the nicer stones, quickly separating the keepers from the rejects. “Most of these won't need much work. A bit of grinding to fit, but they'll all polish up beautifully."

Melina looked at the lump of lapis lazuli, its rough shape, jagged edges, clearly not sourced from the river or the riverbed. Would he ask?

“Not this time," Huck said, admiring a piece of amethyst. “It'd take too long to break it up and polish the pieces into something useable. We'll use these rocks for this set, and then the next we'll use the lapis." He looked up at her, smirking winsomely. “Can you get some more? We'd only need a few sets inlaid with lapis and we'd have enough money to get to Val Salia with bells on!"

“I'm sure I can," said Melina, flatly. “Want me to keep an eye out for some jade, too? Some tanzanite, maybe?"

“Sure, if you can," he said, looking over the stones, his mind obviously elsewhere.

Melina sighed and finished her ale.

She lay awake in their bed, staring at the ceiling, moonlight shining through the loose planks. Huck snored softly next to her, his back to her. She supposed she should be thankful to be married to a gentle if inattentive man like Huck, and not some cruel beast. Like most young people in Ymir, their marriage had been arranged, with her dowry being a clean set of steel and bronze hammers and fifty copper ingots, she'd practically been given away. But then, she supposed, Huck's family weren't particularly choosey about who they married their fourth son off to so long as she was a woman, if only to quell the rumors circulating about the community. In the six years she had been married to Huck, he'd bedded her as many times, usually on their anniversary, and always with significant cajoling and drink. She didn't begrudge him his inclinations, he certainly didn't choose them. Ymirian attitudes towards such men were much of the reason he'd set them off on this damned foolish adventure, but there were times such as these that she longed to feel wanting eyes upon her, to have someone admire and revel her full, feminine figure with their hands, to be wanted as a woman and held down and–

A sound from outside drew her attention from her increasingly potent, frustrated fantasies. It could have been nothing, just a small animal knocking things about. It was probably just the wind, jostling the plants of their ramshackle shed. It was likely it was just–

Outside something cast a shadow in the moonlight, a dark shape flickering behind the widely spaced boards, followed by a light, gentle knocking. “Tak-tak-a-tak-tak."

Melina got out of bed, adjusting the meager cotton swathe that served as her nightgown, threadbare and almost translucent. Carefully, she opened the door, slowly as to not wake Huck with its creaking. She said nothing, knowing no one was there or, at the very least, no one who'd reply. She looked down at the foot of the door. There, in the dirt, was her hanky, weighed down by another rough piece of lapis-lazuli. She reached down and picked them both up, admiring the stone in the moonlight. She looked around, squinting, hoping to see any sign of her apparent benefactor. Seeing no one, she closed the door, failing to notice the strange tracks in the dirt, wide indentations in the earth marked by two claw marks in front.

The next day, she was walking up the riverside, a heavy rucksack on her back, making her way towards the cataract. Huck had volunteered to grind and polish the stones in her stead, his metalwork now done, and had sent her up the river to find more of the valuable stones.

Alone, of course.

She wasn't worried, of course. The passage through the Mountains was patrolled by the Indrel Colony known colloquially, and uncreatively, as the 'Friendly Colony'. The other women at Camp Friendly commented on how safe the area felt in comparison to wherever they'd come from. The Indrel, for their part, live in caves in the mid-hills, their foraging ensuring that those spaces were, by and large, free of large predators. Banditry was also unheard of in the Mountains, as no other Indrel allowed Humans to pass through their territory unescorted. For bandits and barbarians to operate in these Mountains, they could only do so with the permission of their strange, insectoid hosts. Needless to say, there was no threat of uncouth types showing up to harass traders.

The roar of the cataract grew steadily louder as she approached. She looked around, huffing slightly with the exertion, looking up at the slightly terraced formation before her, water roaring between stony teeth as is surged over small drops of no more than a few feet. Not quite rapids, where the water churned and frothed and writhed, but still fast enough to roar and babble. It was in the pools of these terraced structures that she would find the smoothest stones, both on the shore and in the water, as the constant flow rubbed the stones together, smoothing out the edges.

'If there's lapis around here raw, there's got to be some in the river, too,' she thought to herself. 'In smaller pieces, rounded, smooth. I'd be able to decorate Huck's wares as fast as he could smith them!'

She pulled off the rucksack and set about opening it, producing a long wooden box with an opening at one end and a glass pane on the other. Hiking up her skirt, Melina set about scouring the shallows of the terraces for any hint of the precious stones. After nearly an hour of searching, she gave up, walking to the shore and setting down the looking glass. With a sigh she sat down on a sun-warmed rock, looking out at the terraced pool and racing water, her chilled feet slowly warming. She focused on the deep dark waters near the center, where the current was. If the lapis was breaking off like the shard suggested, it was likely that if any was in the water, it would be in the deep end, carried by the water.

She glanced around, her sharp green eyes scanning the valley and mountains for any onlookers. Seeing none, she reached back and pulled the drawstring of her bodice, undoing the knot in a single pull. She shucked her buxom form out of the stiff leather and linen before hiking her blouse up and over her head, casting it to the ground where it was followed shortly by her skirt. Dressed only in her cotton undergarments, she reached into the rucksack and produced a length of rope some forty feet long. She then tied one end around a piece of riverwood and jamming it between two stones on the riverbank, tying the other around her waist. The knot, like the one on her bodice, would hold fast with tension, but would undo when the tail was tugged. She stood before the mountain-fed river, the water likely had been snow and ice not too long ago. She huffed and puffed, shaking out her arms and legs as she warmed herself up, building up the nerve. With a final inhale and exhale, she dove into the icy water.

The rope uncoiled as she swam down to the bottom, grabbing rocks as she dragged herself against the current, eyes scanning for any bit of color among the blacks and grays and whites of the riverbed pebbles. A minute later, she broke the surface, panting and shivering as she took a breath, diving back under the water once more. Another minute passed, the rope rolling along the bank as she allowed herself to be pulled along with the current, scanning the riverbed for any sign of that glorious blue mineral. The line went taut and still, jerking as she pulled herself back to the shore. Melina shambled out of the water, shivering and pale, her full lips nearly blue and jittering as her teeth chattered. She quickly scampered out of river, taking hold of her hair, now dark reddish brown and straight, wringing out as much of the freezing water as she could. Her thin cotton undergarments had gone translucent, clinging to her full, feminine frame like a milky second skin, her rosy pink nipples now upright, poking out of her top, dark and stiff like grape-sized pebbles. Melina chattered and shivered, dancing about on the flat, sunwarmed rock for a moment before laying herself down, loosing a wavering moan of relief as she pressed against the warm stone. Before long, her shivering faded, her teeth ceased to chatter, the noon sun cooking away the cold and damp until her undergarments were white and dry once more.

Melina turned over onto her back, grunting in irritation. She saw a few decent stones down there, quartzes and jaspers and agates mostly, certainly nothing worth freezing half to death for, and exactly zero lapis lazuli. Her mind drifted back to the other day, the stone, the coarseness of is as though freshly broken away from a vein, her late-night benefactor returning her hanky to her like a knight from the stories. It was obvious she had been gifted the precious stones, but by who? And where did they get the lapis? There was not a trace of it in the river, not even flecked sediments. A mine? Who's mining in the Indrel Mountains?

A dull 'clack' sounded to her right. She sat up and looked over to the source of the sound. Sure enough, twelve or so feet away, was another large, rough chunk of brilliant lapis lazuli, sitting there among the dull river-polished pebbles. Melina got to her feet, looking around at the boulders dotting the river bank and gentle slope up into the mountains.

“Hello? Who's there?" She called out, putting a stern bark into her voice, hoping whoever it was could sense her nervousness. “I know I'm not just finding these things, so you can just the act already and come out!"

She almost screamed in shock when something did just that. Whatever it was, it wasn't human, but some manner of insect. Indeed Melina had shooed similar looking things out of their kitchen back home with a broom. She grimly mused she'd need a lot more than a broom to make this creature turn, though. It was huge! …For an insect, that is. Measured against the cluster of boulders it had leapt out from behind, this creature appeared to be about five feet tall, its body composed of three distinct segments, a head, a thorax, and an abdomen that jutted out backward at a right angle, all balanced precariously on two thin, multi-jointed legs. The thing looked at her with five eyes, its orange pupils almost glowing in the black of its sclera, and… smiled? Its mouthparts shifted so that the little gap between them curled upwards in what was unmistakably a smile. To hammer home this expression, the giant bug raised a thin stick-like arm and waved its two-fingered pincer at her.

It was then that she noticed the flax satchel hanging from its shoulders, full to bursting with… lapis lazuli? Since when did bugs–

Melina felt like slapping herself for her idiocy. Clearly, this creature was an Indrel, the race of insectoids that, for whatever reason, allowed Humans into their territory. She'd heard of them, of course, told how strange it was that these particular Indrel, or 'Friendlies' as they were known at Camp Friendly, not only allowed Humans to cross their territory unescorted, but encouraged it, even allowed them to set up weigh stations like Camp Friendly. She'd found herself imagining just what a giant, intelligent insect might look like, often creeping herself out in the process. However, she wasn't expecting them to look so… benign? Indeed, the smiling waving creature before her looked downright harmless save for its pincers.

“Oh!" She gasped, realizing she'd been holding her breath. “Oh, hello! You must be an Indrel. You… you are an Indrel, right?"

The Indrel nodded, still smiling.

“Do you, um, talk?"

The Indrel's smile shifted downwards into what Melina presumed was a pout, shaking its head.

“Okay… well, you obviously understand me," said Melina, smiling herself when the Indrel nodded fervently. “Good. Well, I don't really know what you people's customs are but, uh, well… do you give everyone rocks?" The Indrel cocked its head to the side, confused, prompting Melina to point at the satchel. “Those. Those rocks. You've been giving them to me. Is it a greeting custom?"

The Indrel smiled coyly(?) and shook its head.

“Then why are you giving me them? I'm not complaining, they're very valuable–" Melina paused when the Indrel's smile widened as it nodded more vigorously. “You know they're valuable? Why do you want to give them to me, then?"

The Indrel chittered in amusement, reaching into the satchel and producing another chunk, dropping it to the ground at its feet before taking off, skipping like a sparrow. It stopped a ways away and faced her, beckoning with a claw. Melina weighed her options: come back empty handed and spend the rest of the day polishing rocks, or follow this weird giant insect, collecting lapis like a bird pecking at crumbs. She walked over and picked up the nearest piece, examining the beautiful and valuable blue rock.

“I mean, I've never heard of Friendlies hurting anyone…" she mumbled aloud.

She got dressed as quickly as she could, pulling on her boots and hefting her rucksack, following after the Indrel, picking up the plum-sized pieces of lapis it dropped along the way and stuffing them in her bag. It led her up the valley side, to where the basin reared up to become the mountains. After about twenty minutes of following 'breadcrumbs', Melina found herself approaching a rocky outgrowth jutting from the base of a cliff, a series of boulders forming an alcove. She rounded a boulder and stopped in her tracks, seeing the Indrel standing in the mouth of a large cave, smiling. The Indrel beckoned her, more animated than ever.

“I'm not going in there!" Melina called out, shaking her head. “Not unless you tell me what you want with me!"

The Indrel paused, cocking its head to the side, reaching into the satchel and dropping another stone.

Melina scoffed and shook her rucksack, the ten or so pounds of lapis inside jangling. “I've got plenty, thanks! Now, either you figure out a way to tell me why you want me to follow you in there, or I head back home!"

The Indrel's mouthparts clicked in irritation, a low hissing chitter escaping it. It set down the satchel, looking at her and then at the bag, questioning with its eyes.

Melina rolled her eyes, setting her bag down and sitting on it. “I'll keep an eye on it for you. Go do what you gotta do."

The Indrel smiled and nodded, scampering off into the cave. Melina sighed and sat, blowing a strand of her now-dry and curly ruddy-blonde hair out of her eyes. What was she doing? She already had enough lapis lazuli to buy a new wagon, stock it, and head out to Val Salia the next day. Out of here, out of this valley… she turned around on her ruck and gazed out at the valley, from the higher vantage point she could see further, where the river emptied into a small lake before resuming further west as a river once more. Over the trees she could make out small line of crude wooden buildings that was Camp Friendly, though she couldn't quite see her and her husband's illustrious hovel. From both directions a trickle of wagons flowed in and out, the beginnings of the big caravans that would soon cluster about the Camp, where buyers for her husband's wares would put food on their table for another few weeks. With this much lapis could they afford a larger forge? Finer tools? An actual house? Maybe, eventually, but processing the stone into expensive jewelry would take time. Would selling it to dye-makers get them enough cash to live like actual Human beings again?

“Ten pounds, no way…" She murmured aloud, turning around to look at the cave, the half-full bag in front of it. “Twenty? Maybe. Forty would be better. A hundred…" Melina shook her head, smiling sourly. “I wonder what else they dig up down there…"

“Dirt and rock mostly," said a voice from behind her. It was deep, even-toned, like a man's, but oddly… metallic? Like a thin sheet of tin under a hammer. “However, we very frequently encounter resources that are valuable to Humans."

Melina yelped in surprise, leaping off her rucksack. Standing next to her rucksack was an Indrel, similar to the one that had led her here but… different. It was taller, perhaps six foot atop the his slightly domed headplate, and broader across the chest and shoulders. It was a different color, too, its carapace a mix of tallow yellow and light brown as opposed to the darker yellows and browns of the other one, all with a lustrous sheen as though polished. The hair, if that's what it was, was also different, identical in color but straight with thin, fine strands as opposed to a wild thicket of wiry bristles. Indeed, its hair looked remarkably soft and lustrous like that of combed and pampered noblewoman. Seemed about as decorated, too, the sides festoon with looping braids set with beads, the hair back tied into a single strand held together with golden(!) bands. Was this some sort of big shot bug?

“I startled you," it said, bowing respectfully. “Forgive me."

“Uh… yeah, you did. Sorry, I'm not usually so skittish," said Melina, sweeping her hair back over her shoulders, laughing nervously. “I'm not usually so jumpy."

“Yes, we know," it said, nodding. “You are remarkably bold for a Human female, venturing out so far from camp."

“Yeah, well, someone has to put food on the table," she said, shrugging.

The Talking Indrel cocked her head to the side. “You… eat the stones?"

“No, we…" Melina rolled her eyes, walking over and pulling out a chunk of lapis. “This stone is valuable to Humans, for dyes, for jewelry. That's what I do, me and my husband, we make jewelry."

“Which you trade in exchange for barter and currency. Yes, I see," Talky said, nodding. “We are familiar with the concept of transaction, though my people do not engage in it on an interpersonal or societal level. I believe the term is called 'business'?"

“Right…" Melina said, this bug spoke like the snobbish alchemists that would commission Huck to make copper tubing for their experiments. “Um, so… why do you, uh, guys(?) want me to…" She trailed off pointing at the cave and then at the rucksack. “What's going on here?"

“Of course. Your trepidation is perfectly reasonable," said Talky, picking up a piece of lapis and handing it to her. “We would like to do business."

“Doesn't your colony have ties with the Trading Guild. Why ask me?" Melina gestured at the bag full of lapis lazuli and at the river. “Why all this running about?"

Talky paused, looking about as though someone might be listening. “This is to be a discreet arrangement. We would prefer that neither the Trading Guild nor our colony leaders learn of this transaction."

'Oh, of course. Under the table dealings with a giant bug… I just wanted to find some shiny rocks…' Melina rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. “Why not?"

“It is… difficult to explain. Perhaps it is better if I show you," said Talky, gesturing to the cave. “If you would follow me, please."

“I'm still not sure," she said, stepping back, eyes narrowing. “You're not going to eat me or anything, are you?"

Talky buzzed a low trilling sound, its face shifting into a lipless Indrel smile. “Our larder has no space for one so robust as yourself."

Melina glanced down at the generous heft of her bosom, the noticeable span of her hips, before locking the Indrel with a flat glare. “You calling me fat?"

“I meant no offense. It is a sign of prestige and accomplishment among our people to earn enough food for it to manifest in our outward appearance," said Talky, clearly taking in an eyeful. “Our scouts first assumed you were of noble birth."

Melina crossed her arms over her chest, frowning. “Just digging yourself deeper here, pal."

Talky smirked, mirroring the gesture. “We do a lot of digging here."

Talky looked over, the structure on his shoulder and back unfolded, revealing itself to be another arm. Melina boggled as it reached out to her, prompting her to hold out her hand. It dropped a small green rock the size and color of a lime into her palm, she could tell right away from the weight and coolness what it was: jade. She gasped and held the rock up to the sun, the light glowing about its edges as it penetrated the opaque green rock. Imperial jade.

“Is that to your liking, Mrs…?" Talky said, pausing. “How rude. I'm afraid I did not ask your name."

“Melina Tin-Opal," she said, absently, boggling at the jade stone. “You?"

“My Indrel name cannot be translated into Human speech, but you may call me Buddy," said 'Buddy'. “If you wish to, Mrs. Tin-Opal."

“Buddy?"

“It was graciously bestowed upon me by a Trading Guild diplomat," said Buddy, looking distinctly proud. “Is that stone sufficient for you to consider doing business with us?"

Melina smirked, tossing the lump of jade into her rucksack and offering her arm. “You twisted my arm."

Buddy looked at her arm and then back up to her. “I did no such thing."

“Let's do business, Buddy."

It was a good thing she'd offered her arm, for the second she set foot in the cave, she was blind. The sun from outside barely reached five feet into the entrance, and all beyond was sheer darkness. Swallowing her misgivings, she allowed herself to be led through the inky blackness, the crisp clicks and clacks of Buddy's feet echoing off the walls. Buddy led her through the blackness by the arm, looped over hers like she was a debutant at a ball. Eventually, the darkness gave way to a dull blue glow, phosphorescent fungi lodged in the walls and roof of the tunnel eventually offering enough light to see by. She turned to her host, the tall talking insect, its lustrous carapace catching the light like wet stones. It gazed ahead, expression neutral, but something about the way this being carried itself seemed… regal? Classy, anyway, observing some sort of sense of decorum, to say nothing of its robust vocabulary. It was how she'd imagined a prince from her childhood fairy tales to act.

'Does that make me a princess or a diplomat?' She wondered to herself.

Buddy noticed her attention, turning to her. “Yes?"

“Uh…" She muttered, uncharacteristically stymied. “I was just wondering, are you a, um, important Indrel or something?"

“I suppose you could say so," Buddy replied. “I was the first male of my kind born."

“Your kind?"

“Yes. I am of the Interpreter Caste for the Colony," Buddy said, as though that meant anything to her. “A caste unique to this Colony among others. Our role is to more effectively interact with Humans, to facilitate diplomacy."

“Oh, I see," she said, not really understanding. “Your people have castes too, then?"

Buddy did a small double take. “You are familiar with castes? I was under the impression Humans did not have them."

“Yeah, where I'm from, the citystate of Ymir, the population is separated by job and class. They tell us what we can do, where we can go, who we marry. I'm a jeweler, my husband is a redsmith, er, copperworker. Back there we worked with semi-precious stones and lesser metals."

“I see," Buddy replied after a moment's pause. “Fascinating. Perhaps our people are not so dissimilar after all."

Melina scoffed. “Well, I mean, there's a reason my husband and I are out here and not, well, back home."

“You broke your caste?" Buddy said, its tone wondrous. “I am envious."

“I can honestly say no one's ever said that to me," she said, chuckling. “So, what do you do? You said you were the first interpreter?"

“Not quite," Buddy replied, head shaking, causing the beads in its braids to click together. “I am the first male interpreter. You see, with Indrel, only one in one hundred is born male for any given caste. Our role is, come mating season, to travel to the breeding grounds and seed the queens and their proxies of other colonies and then return."

Oh, shit. It–no–he actually was a prince! She shifted as an inexplicable and sudden blush burned in her cheeks, now acutely aware of his arm around hers. “I see… so, you're the oldest son in the colony?"

“Of my caste, yes." Buddy's antennae perked up, pointing to a better lit offshoot of the tunnel they were walking in. “We're here."

They stepped into the offshoot, revealing a room, brighter and better illuminated by several orange glowing fungi in the walls and ceiling. In the center of the room was a small table and two stools, obviously Human made. He led her over to the table, pulling the chair out for her, the gentleman, before seating himself.

“Now, shall we 'get down to business', as you Humans say?" Buddy asked, a charming smile on his face. “Would you like a beverage?"

“Yeah, sure," she said, perplexed at the sudden flush burning in her cheeks as the shorter Indrel from before stepped into view, a wineskin and two copper cups in its (her?) claws. “What's this all about then?"

“Some context is needed," Buddy said as the other Indrel filled their glasses with dark red wine. “My caste is very new, you see. We were bred specifically to interact with and better understand Humans. You can probably tell by my voice that we have a much easier time with Human speech than Indrel such as this worker."

“Does she have a name?" Melina said, nodding at the worker.

“No. She rarely interacts with Humans," said Buddy, cocking his head to the side. “You may apply one, if you wish."

“Hmm… running around with that bag full of lapis… Rocky?" She turned to the slightly stunned Indrel. “How does Rocky sound?"

“HrrACKxxxee…" Rocky buzzed, harshly, sounding like she was clearing her throat, her expression that of genuine gratitude. “Kxkkhkxx!"

Buddy smirked and nodded, turning to Melina. “She wants you to know she is immensely honored and gratified to be given such a title."

“Any time, Rocky. Thanks for the lapis," said Melina, sipping the wine. “So, you were saying, Buddy?"

“Yes, well, as with any new endeavor, there are unforeseen complications," said Buddy. “Specifically, Indrel males of my caste require frequent sexual release in order to maintain mental health. In periods of prolonged abstinence, they can become willful and aggressive."

“Yeah, a lot of guy tend to get–" Melina began to say when she remembered her surroundings, remember what she was talking to. “I'm sorry, what?"

“Males of the Interpreter Caste become unruly and stressed when denied sexual release for extended periods," Buddy answered, blithely. “You see, conventional males only engage in sexual activity but once a year, during breeding season, and are otherwise untroubled. However, due to a side effect of my caste's creation, the males born to it experience the mating urge at all times."

Melina thought on this for a moment, stuck like a wagon in a ditch before taking a hefty swig of wine. “I see. And you want me to…?"

Buddy smirked at this, leaning forward. “We want you…"

Melina gulped her mouthful hard, a deep red blush settling in her cheeks as hot blood flushed elsewhere, a familiar frustrating tingle blossoming within her. What was happening? Was she actually considering this? With them? With a giant bug?! Her love life was hardly robust, but surely she wasn't so desperate as to–

“…To approach the females of your camp and deliver our proposal."

Oh. “Oh."

“You want me to ask the women at camp to come out here and have sex with a bunch of bugs? Er, no offense."

“None taken. We are aware that some Humans find our appearance unnerving. However, we also understand that specific Human females engage in copulation in exchange for goods and services," Buddy continued, apparently oblivious to her internal conflict. “Correct?"

Melina thought back to the 'hotel' that made up the main social hub of the camp. In reality, it was closer to a saloon and a brothel, where weary caravaners would wile away the hours and contents of their purses on the dozen or so painted ladies pretending to be waitresses. “Yes, that's right. For the right price, whores'll do anything. But why Humans? Why not your own females?"

“As we are related to all members of the breeding caste, doing so would be… inadvisable," he said, wryly. “I understand Humans have a similar taboo."

“Incest, right," said Melina, glancing over at Rocky as she refilled her cup. “What about her? She's not a breeder, is she?"

“No, she is an infertile worker. However, there is a risk that mating with members of this caste could result in them becoming fertile, a new Queen, as Indrel are known to do when a Queen dies unexpectedly." He paused, examining her confused expression before adding: “The existing Queen would be obliged to chew the rival's head off to preserve her dynasty."

Melina glanced at his mouthparts, when fit together they almost resembled a human face, but she could see the seams, the gleam of sharp cutting edges and ligaments for powerful, crushing muscles. “oh i see"

“You now understand our predicament," said Buddy, leaning forward on the table. “Will the 'whores' be amenable to this proposition?"

Melina sighed, looking down at the wine and then at the admittedly well-proportioned and well-spoken bug sitting opposite her, shrugging. “Like I said. For the right price."

“Excellent," said Buddy, his right antennae twitching as he sent a wordless command to Rocky. “We are, of course, willing to pay. Both for their services and their discretion."

Rocky scuttled over and placed a small hemp bag on the table, a handful of small, red stones spilling out. Melina picked one up and examined it. It was smooth, polished, but irregular, uncut, and a deep beautiful red in color. She held it up to the light and gasped as light seeped through the center: a ruby. She looked down at the little bag, stuffed full of rubies.

“You have… more like these?" She hoped she didn't sound as astounded as she felt.

“Many more. We also have a quantity of several other stones we understand to be valuable," he said, smiling as she picked up another gem, poring over it. “Unearthed over the course of excavating our tunnels. Before we learned of their value to Humans, they were discarded along with the soil and rock."

Melina glanced up at him from the ruby. “That's where you got all that lapis."

“Indeed, and many others," said Buddy, leaning forward. “Will these be sufficient payment?"

“Heh!" Melina chuckled. “This many rubies would buy you a dozen doxies and their souls!"

Buddy cocked his head to the side, perplexed. “What is a 'soul'?"

“…Nevermind. Yeah, this'll cover it," she said, before asking. “By the way, why'd you rope me into this? Why not approach a hunter or trapper or some such?"

“We understand that Human males can be territorial when it comes to the subject of Human females, especially with requests of this nature."

Melina willed a frown from her face; a little male territoriality would be nice from time to time. “Fair enough."

Buddy smiled. “You will do it? You will deliver our terms and payment to the 'doxies'?"

Melina glanced down at the little bag, thinking back to the lump of jade and pounds of lapis lazuli in her rucksack outside, a notion building in her, the shadow of an idea forming. 'What if I…'

She quashed the nascent notion, her cheeks and loins burning anew. She was a married woman! Happily married to a kind, talented man… who seemed to think of her as a little sister, at best. Not to mention he regarded her head-turning body and comely face with all the rampant lust one might spare a well made piece of furniture. She thought back to how Buddy had looked at her when teasing her about her 'robustness'. Now that she knew he was, well, a he, if that wasn't a leer, she'd eat her blouse!

“What am I thinking…?" she muttered under her breath.

“Mrs. Tin-Opal?"

“Hm? Oh! Yes, I'll deliver your terms to their mistress." Melina rapped her fingers against the table, gesturing at the bag of rubies. “Though I think a down payment would help move things along."

Buddy seemed elated at this, nodding, an admittedly adorable smile on his hard, buggy face. “Yes. Yes, of course! And for your payment–"

Melina held up her hand. “Any more rocks and I won't be able to carry my bag back home! I'll get word back to you in… a few days?"

Buddy stood up and bowed deeply. “That would be most appreciated, Mrs. Tin-Opal."

“A pleasure doing business, Buddy,"

Melina made her way back down the riverbank, mind a flurry. What had she just done? What had she just agreed to? How would she even broach this to the saloon mistress? She was certain they'd ascent to the offer once rubies were on the table, but how long would their discretion last? How long until word got out? She supposed she and Huck would be well on their way to Val Salia by then, of course, with enough money to buy a lot in the marketplace. All they had to do was sell…

She stopped, looking back at her laden rucksack.

'Oh, hey Honey. This? Oh, yeah, I just found ten pounds of lapis on the riverbank. And a chunk of imperial jade! The rubies? Oh, they're like pebbles up there!' She heard herself say in her mind, grimacing, before grumbling aloud. “Huck would have the whole camp out here sifting the river the next day! Then they'd ask and I'd have to answer…"

She set the rucksack down next to a pile of rocks. After shifting the rocks about to make a rough cairn, she unloaded all but two of the smaller chunks into the pile, jade included. 'There. I come back with two small pieces, that'd be enough to make jewelry and sell to dye merchants for a pretty copper to buy provisions. Next few weeks, this lapis will let us build up a nest egg for when we get to Val Salia. Yeah. That's a good plan.'

She glanced back into her rucksack, to the bag of rubies that would be the whores' payment. Sure, Huck could make ten cheap rings in an afternoon and those rubies would make each one sell for more than any set he'd made thus far, but did she really want to shortchange the Indrel? The Indrel who, more or less, allowed them all to live each passing day? A permit that could quickly and bloodily expire should anyone rock the cart.

'Can we be out of here before the whores blow the whole lid off this operation?' She pondered, grimacing. 'Do I want to take that chance?'

She set the capstone on the cairn, stepping back and examining it; to anyone unfamiliar with the area, it looked just like any other pile of rocks. She set back off down the river towards camp.

Huck had been thrilled at her 'discovery', nattering on and on about this and that. She hadn't shown him the rubies, and certainly not about their benefactors. Huck, being Huck, was too wrapped up in what he could make with so much beautiful blue stone to ponder what so much rough-hewn lapis was doing near a river, nor did he ask why his loving wife seemed so quiet and distracted. Instead, he finished his dinner and set off for the work station outside, to grind the surplus lapis into a fine powder to sell to dye merchants.

Melina sat at the table and sipped her ale, chewing her bread and cheese, not really tasting either, squeezing and shifting the bag of smooth, uncut rubies affixed to her waistband.

Once again in bed, Melina lay next to a snoring Huck, staring at the ceiling. Since that tumultuous afternoon, Melina's blood had been up in a way she'd not known since first married, before she realized her husband's inclinations. Her overtures, of course, had been rebuffed, a demurring Huck claiming to have pulled a muscle grinding the stone to powder. Undeterred, Melina had offered to massage the alleged knot out of his back, hoping to coax him into one of their infrequent liaisons. Huck fell asleep five minutes in, leaving her to stew in her own juices. Clouds had rolled in that night, blocking the moon and plunging the valley into darkness. Formless shapes danced before her eyes as she looked into the dark, mind percolating with the conundrum that had plagued her since the afternoon.

'I shouldn't have told him he could buy their silence,' she thought to herself, guiltily. 'He clearly doesn't understand Humans all that well. I mean, understands them well enough to not ask a man for such a thing, but not enough to know you can't buy people's silence. A person's, maybe…'

She sighed aloud, unconcerned at waking Huck as he snored softly beside her. There were times, in the peaks of her frustration, that she mused she could ride another man next to him and he'd hardly even stir. Melina turned back to the darkness, the formless things her eyes saw there coalesced, shifted, becoming a face.

But not a Human face.

That Indrel prince, informally named 'Buddy', hovered before her in her mind's eye. How polite he had been, but not too polite, clearly unafraid to banter and tease, yet he spoke so clearly and well-heeled. His classy airs and regal bearing held little, if any, arrogance or conceit, only a cool, controlled confidence. He'd made her feel like a guest, an equal, an honored diplomat or ambassador, despite the decidedly uncouth nature of his request. The latter spoke to her of a sort of innocence, an unworldliness that, despite his admittedly charming eloquence and regal demeanor, inspired in her a strange sort of… protectiveness?

'Even if those whores keep quiet, who's to say they won't try and take advantage of them?' She thought. 'Or worse? What if one of them has the fire-piss or monger-pox? Can Indrel catch such things? Are their humors the same as ours? Must be. They're the talking-sort, after all. Talking-sort must have the same balances, or near enough, right?' She felt a curious, cold clench in her guts. 'Would Buddy? He's one of that caste, isn't he? Would he…? With them…?'

She rolled over in her bed, away from Huck, drifting off to sleep now that her mind had settled.

She knew what she must do.

The bag of rubies thudded on the table, the contents spilling out, clacking on the wood.

“I'm afraid I do not understand." Buddy looked up at her, expression a mix of confusion and hurt. “You agreed to deliver our terms. You accepted payment. Why do you refuse to fulfill your end of the arrangement?"

“Because, after some thought, I think it's a shit idea," said Melina. “You want this to be discreet? You don't want the Trade Guild or your higher ups to know? Well, you ain't getting that with whores."

“But you said–"

“I know what I said!" Melina threw up her arms. “At the time, I believed it myself. But then I remembered that whores talk. Shit, people talk. Humans talk. It's what we're best at. If you don't want this getting out… well, the fewer Humans the better."

“I see…" Buddy said, his tone and expression dejected. “Then there is no solution. No discreet solution, anyway. As disappointing as this revelation has proven to be, I must thank you for your honesty, Mrs. Tin-Opal. You have saved us all from a potentially fatal incident." The prince got up from the stool and made to depart when Melina cleared her throat, causing him to turn to her. “Yes? I understand that Humans make this noise to clear their air passageways, but also as nonverbal means of getting attention."

'Adorable ponce,' she thought to herself, saying. “How many of these troublesome males are there? Including yourself, of course."

“Including myself?" Buddy replied, cocking his head to the side. “Six. Why do you ask?"

Six?

Manageable.

“And how often do you reckon they'd need to be, er, relieved?"

Buddy thought on this for a moment. “Truthfully, a set schedule has not yet been ascertained. Only that after three months of abstinence, behavior can become unruly, even aggressive."

“So if, say, one was tended to per week…?" She ventured.

Buddy nodded. “That would be a tenable arrangement. But, as you said, Humans cannot be relied on for discretion, so this hypothetical is moot."

“Humans? No, you can't rely on Humans," said Melina, smiling coquettishly as she leaned forward on the table, her pale, freckled cleavage on display. “But one Human? Why, she'd take it to the grave."

Buddy paused, looking her over, his hard bug features narrowing in confusion. “I'm… afraid I do not follow."

Melina's smile widened as she reached up and hooked a finger in her top, pulling it down to reveal more of her bosom.

Buddy said nothing, eyes shifting down to her cleavage, then up to her face, then down to her cleavage again. This repeated three or four more times before his face lit up in realization. “You? You will do this?"

She nodded. “I will."

“But… you are not a 'doxie' or 'whore'," he said after a moment's thought. “You are a jeweler. It is not your purview."

“Finding stones is half the job." She shrugged. “The way I see it, you have the stones I need for my trade, and I have the ability to pay for them. As for discretion, well, no one else around here has rubies or jade or lapis. I'd have to be mad to jeopardize that."

“There is… logic in what you say," said Buddy, cautiously. “But did you not say you were married? Are there not customs against such things?"

“I'm not exactly my husband's type," she said, holding up a hand when Buddy opening his mouth to ask the obvious question. “Nevermind. Point is, he's not the type to be territorial. Besides, with an arrangement like this, cheating is at the bottom of the list. What do you say?"

Buddy regained his composure quickly, standing up straight and extending his pincer. “Your terms are acceptable."

She reached out to take his before pulling her hand back. “Before I agree to anything…"

“Yes?"

“How is this…" she gestured at herself and then at him. “Supposed to work? You're a smart guy, I assume you know how, well, the act is done."

Buddy smirked and nodded. “Take it from me, Humans and Indrel are entirely compatible as far as the act is concerned."

“I trust you, but…"

“But?"

Melina stood up and set her hands on the table, leaning forward so that the Indrel Prince could get a full view down her blouse. “I'd just like to test the waters before I dive in~"

Buddy tore his eyes away from her bosom and looked about the room. “I… do not see any water?"

Melina reached over, taking his extended claw and guided it down the opening of her top, clasping his pincers around her full, rounded breast. She giggled lightly as she felt him gently squeeze and palpate, the look on his face unmistakably that of a virgin boy getting his first handful.

“Oh." He looked up, meeting her eyes. “I see."

He led her into another room. It was circular, high-ceilinged and well-lit by orange and blue fungi, with a round platform in the center capped by a large cushion: the bed.

“This is the room for your, er, duties," said Buddy, uncharacteristically stymied as he followed her in, drawing the curtain door behind him. “Rocky will stand vigil, ensuring you are not disturbed. Should you require anything, any changes or additional furnishings, you need only ask."

Melina giggled at the Prince's nerves as she sat down on the bed, patting the spot next to her. “Come on over. I won't bite."

Buddy studied her for a moment, eyes narrowing. “That… was not my concern? Should it be?" She only smiled and patted the bed more insistently. “Oh! yes, of course."

He set himself down next to her, ramrod stiff, pincers clicking together where his lap would be were he a Human lad.

“You seem tense," she said, scooting next to him, reaching up and undoing her hair, letting her curly red-blonde locks spill out over her shoulders. “I'd offer a massage, but…"

“I-indeed!" He exclaimed, his five eyes darting back and forth as though trying to watch every part of her at once. “We Indrel d-do not have our flesh on the outside. Our carapace is very, er, durable." His eyes widened as she leaned forward, crossing her arms on her lap, causing her pale, freckled cleavage to bulge out through the top of her blouse. “…Unfortunately."

She giggled and leaned over, planting a small kiss on his hard, chitinous cheek. “You're cute."

He boggled at her, touching the site of the kiss with a pedipalp as she leaned forward, reaching for her boots. He blinked, his eyes become focused, glinting as his orange pupils began to glow.

With the unnerving speed of a striking spider, his pincer flashed out, grabbing her by the wrist. “No."

Melina's eyes snapped up to his, wide and green in alarm. A wolfish, predatory smile spread across Buddy's face as he slid off the bed, kneeling before her. “I will disrobe you. I wish to see every part of your form."

“Uh…" She muttered, a blush blossoming in her cheeks as he undid her bootstraps and slid them off. “Okay."

He hiked up her skirt and held up her bare leg, leaning in and dusting her smooth, silky skin with his fuzzy antennae, starting at the knee, down the shin, before paying special attention to her foot. Melina squeaked and squirmed as the soft, felty limbs poked and prodded and rubbed about her sole and toes.

“C-careful!" She said, biting back a squeal. “I'm ticklish!"

He didn't stop, only glancing up at her, smirking. “Ticklish?"

“You know! It's w-when someone–anh!–and it f-feels…" She trailed off, remembering his 'durable carapace'. “I guess you wouldn't. What're you doing, anyway?"

“Smelling you," he replied, continuing to tap and rub and prod. “I'm rather enjoying the experience."

“You're smelling my feet?"

“We Indrel smell as much as we see. It's how we speak without using words," said Buddy, gently squeezing and palpating her feet with his pincers. “I enjoy how these smell in particular. Is that unusual?"

She paused, shrugging. “A little, yeah."

He buzzed a chuckle at this, resuming his 'sniffing'. “If this is the most unusual this liaison gets, I'll be surprised."

Buddy traced up her leg with his antennae, up her lap, her bodice, until coming face to face with her, locking eyes. “I must admit, I wanted this. Ever since Rocky described you to me. Your boldness and dedication to your craft, swimming in the dangerous cold waters, sunning yourself afterwards… almost naked."

Melina blushed harder at this, just how detailed did the little peeping tom get? “And now you get to see for yourself."

“Indeed," he said, pincer reaching up and taking the tail the knot in her bodice's drawstring. “And I am going to savor every moment."

With surprising deftness, he undid the knot and loosened the bodice. Melina wordlessly surrendered to his ministrations and soon her bodice and blouse were on the floor, followed shortly by her skirt. She panted softly, her heart racing in her chest as she lay on the bed, the creature looming over her was angular, inhuman, covered in armored carapace, black claws and sharp mandibles shining in the light. At that moment she felt distinctly vulnerable. Her small, soft body naked save for a few flimsy scraps of cotton, her smooth skin thin and fragile. His claws and jaws could easily tear her to bloody tatters if he wished. Her eyes drifted up to his face, to his eyes, all five of them, glowing orange irises within black sclera, like flecks carnelian set in obsidian, utterly inhuman save for the genuine glow of reverence and admiration within them. Locking with those eyes, her body flared with excitement, hot blood flushing her face and breasts, her belly fluttering as an unbearable tingling fire blossomed between her legs.

“You are more beautiful than I could have imagined," he said, his smooth, deep voice rumbling with lust, underscored by a metallic flanging.

She blushed harder, her freckled cheeks pink like a rose. “You kind of have me at a disadvantage here. I have all these bloody clothes to take off, while you–"

Buddy reached up, unlooping the beaded braids at the side of his head, letting the hang loose before reaching back, pulling his long hair from the golden brackets holding it back. With a shake of his head, his long black hair fell forward in a cascade, a deeply lustrous blacker than black mane of silky hair, his orange within black eyes peering out from behind his bangs, a wry smirk on his face. He was stunning.

“Is this sufficiently exposed, Mrs. Tin-Opal?" He said, buzzing and amused chuckle.

“Melina," she managed to say, her voice husky, as his claws traced under her undershirt, pulling it over her head, revealing her large milky breasts. “Call me Melina."

“Very well…" Buddy–no–her Prince said, his larger shoulder-mounted limbs unfolding as his main arms traced down to her hips, pulling off her last remaining garment. His powerful-looking second set of arms reached up as the rest of him shuffled down, taking hold of her sensitive mounds in their sharp, hard claws as he nestled between her legs. “…Melina."

Melina squeaked and panted as those claws gently massaged her blushing, sensitive tits, gasping when one brushed over her achingly erect nipples, flush and deep pink with hot blood. She looked down to see Prince moving between her legs. On instinct, she opened for him, the scent of her own arousal radiating off of her, filling the room. The effect on Prince was galvanic, his eyes becoming half-lidded and glossy, his jaws going slack, splitting apart as clear, thick drool spilled forth. Melina squeaked, squeezing handfuls of sheet as she felt his hot, humid breath against her rigid, swollen clit.

“Yoouu schmeeell… xxxssooo guhhd…" He growled, actually growled, gone was his erudite tone and elegant mannerisms, his poise and mien now lost in a raging sea of insectoid lust. “Meeelinaaa…"

'He's like this because of me,' she thought to herself, heart pounding, her breathes coming in reedy, needful pants. 'He wants me so bad, nothing could stop him from taking me now. Not him. Not me. Not anything.'

“Prince," she said aloud, reaching down and taking his face in her hands. “That's what I'm calling you now. Prince."

“Prrrrnnssxxx?" He rumbled, animalistic with lust but still in there, somewhere.

“I want you inside me."

Prince clambered up onto the bed, upper arms bracketing her as his lower arms took hold of her breasts, hot clear drool running in rivulets from his open mandibles, coating her tits in thick, clear slime. His pincers dimpled into her soft flesh, hard but gentle as they squeezed and massaged, spreading his slick saliva over her skin, causing her to squeal and moan as electric jolts of pleasure shot through her body. She looked down to see his abdomen curl down, and down, and down until the end of it was pointing between her legs. The little pincers at the end folded backwards as the tip split open, revealing a swollen rim of slick, green-beige flesh. With a buzzing rumble, Prince's abdomen bunched and heaved forward, his male organ surging forth with a lurid slurping sound.

“By the Ancestors…" Melina's eyes went wide, recoiling as much from reflex as sheer intimidation. “That's your…?"

She wasn't sure what she'd been expecting, feeling slightly embarrassed at herself for entertaining the notion that this rampant bull Indrel would be wielding anything like a man's tool. Unlike the smooth shaft and hooded crown of a Human organ, Prince's consisted of four incrementally thick ovoid lobes, the one at the tip being flattened at the end, flaring outward somewhat. In color it was a pale yellow, beige even, deepening to light green between each segment. It was slick, shining in the phosphorescent light, dripping strands of thick, clear liquid from the shaft. Curiously, she could see no hole for the seed to eject from, only the barest impression of a three-way seam.

She reached out and grabbed Prince's shaft in the middle, gasping as he hissed and rumbled with pleasure at her touch. She squeezed and palpated the member, it was hot to the touch, inhumanly hot, like the fever of a man unlikely to see tomorrow. Also unlike a man, it wasn't hard, not exactly, but firm, like a wineskin filled to near bursting, and slick as an eel for all the clear honey-like slime coating it. She traced down his organ from the middle to the tip, marveling at the different textures and structures. For one, it was bigger than any man's she'd seen. Much bigger. The tip was about the length and width of a plum, with subsequent lobes increasing in length and thickness, with the base being as big around as a medium-sized apple!

She ran her hand up and down it with a slick squelching sound. Based on how her hand couldn't even hold a third of it, Melina reckoned it was over twice the size of any Human she'd seen, 10 inches at least, possibly a full foot long! Granted, the only erect Human males she'd seen was her husband, on the rare moments he was drunk enough to forget she was a woman, and also that one time she accidentally walked in on her young nephew in the throes of teenaged self-passion. Compared to Prince, this tall, rugged male, Huck's prick was as short, skinny, and effete as the rest of him.

A pang of guilt stung her at the acidic thought towards her husband. Huck didn't deserve the blame for her frustration. Truly, he was just as trapped and denied by their marriage as she was. He was a kind man, friendly, gentle, and loving in his own way… just not in a way that made her feel wanted. Desired. Needed. Not like Prince did, literally drooling and half-feral with his desire for her, shedding his erudite composure for the sheer lust she inspired in him. The priests in Ymir would counsel her when her frustrations peaked, assuring her that the spiritual satisfaction of honoring her vows to the Gods and Ancestors was surely just as potent as any sort of carnal pleasure.

They were wrong.

Of what use were her vows now, hundreds of miles away from Ymir and its patron deities? Were they ever valid? The flower of her femininity had been sold off to a man with no ability to maintain it, left to wither, just so his family could deflect scrutiny over their son's true desires. She thought bitterly back to the ceremony, the temple in which they entered covenant overseen by their Gods and Ancestors, the same Gods and Ancestors whose edicts ensured the union would be barren. Were her Gods and Ancestors looking down on her now? Could they see her about to break the laws of man and nature, their laws, and succumb to wanton carnality with a male in every way superior to the one they'd saddled her with? She hoped so.

'Enjoy the show, you bastards!'

Melina leaned back, guiding his huge, rampant member forward, towards her hot, needy sex. Without thinking she angled her hips upward, her body acting on its own, desperate to accept so fine a masculine specimen, to finally be taken by a worthy suitor. Melina gasped sharply as his furled tip pressed up against her opening, pressing forward, her hungry sex happily swallowing his thick, bulbous tip.

“Prince…" She whimpered, already stretched well beyond anything her meager love life had provided, and with four increasingly long, thick lobes to go! She reached up and took his face in her hands, pushing his open mouthparts together until his face was that of her erudite, regal business partner once more. “Please, be gentle?"

Prince blinked, eyes narrowing as he fought through the raw animalistic lust she inspired in him, closing his eyes and opening them, himself once more. “I will, Melina. I would never hurt you."

She pulled him down and pressed her lips against his hard, sharp mouthparts, his dark, lustrous hair hanging like curtains as they kissed. He opened his mouth slightly, his long black tongue snaking into her mouth, coiling around her tongue and tracing her teeth, relishing the shape of her mouth. His saliva was sharp, astringent, but not bitter, almost like the juice of an exotic fruit. She moaned into his mouth as he pressed forward, well and truly stretching her pussy beyond anything she'd felt before as his large, dominant tongue invaded her further, sliding down the back of her throat. Melina's eyes rolled back in her head as she felt herself being conquered from both ends, her body instinctively yielding to her the invading, alien force. The second lobe of his cock slid into her with a muted slurp, her tight inner flesh scraping around his flat, furled tip with delicious friction, every additional inch now plumbing depths never before reached, rubbing and stretching her in places and ways no Human could as he attempted to work the third lobe into her. Melina panted and huffed as the beginning of her climax built within her belly like a coiling spring, wrapping her arms around Prince's torso, squeezing her body into his. His carapace, while hard and unyielding as copper plate, was warm and smooth, her sweat slicked skin slid against his strange exotic contours.

“P-Prince!" She mumbled as almost a foot Indrel tongue dominated one end and almost a foot pushed its way into the other. “I'm gonna… I-I'm gonna–!!"

Prince responded by slamming forward, his third lobe popping into her stretched, almost virginally tight cunt, its thickness effortlessly grinding against her sweetspot. Melina's legs wrapped around his torso, fingers attempting to dig into his hard, smooth shell, her nails scraping ineffectually against the thick chitin. She loosed a choked, squealing cry, that increasing tension and heat in her belly finally let loose as she came explosively, lights flashing behind her eyes as her hips spasmed, legs clenching around his abdomen. Her tunnel clamped down around him as her slick juices erupted around her lover's shaft, filling the room with her heavy, mammalian scent. She moaned and panted, shuddering as the aftershocks rippled through her body, lights flashing behind her eyes as she gazed up at her inhuman lover, the air around him seemed to glow.

“Th-that was–I've never… not like that." She looked down at where their bodies joined, her milky skin slick with a combination of her sweat, his slick secretions, and now her clear, watery girl-cum, dimly embarrassed at the mess she had made. “By the Gods, I didn't know I could cum like that!"

He stared back at her, his eyes wide, mandibles splitting, drool running in rivulets from them, his antennae twitching.

“Prince?"

With a low, throaty growl, Prince yanked his raging cock out of her. Her pussy clung to his thick lobes, desperate to keep him inside, before surrendering them in a series of lewd, slurping pops. Melina yelped as much in surprise as in sensation, her flesh still sensitive from her climax. Prince snarled and grabbed her by the hips and shoulders, rolling her over onto her belly.

'He's frenzied again!' She thought, eyes wide as trepidation and anticipation warred within her. 'It must have been when I came. My scent drove him to this!'

“P-Prince? What're you doing?" She cried as his upper arms took hold of her wrists, pushing her face down and splaying her arms out wide, his lower arms hooking under her hips and lifting her to her knees. She gasped when she felt the hot, dripping tip of his cock line up with her opening once more. “Prince, wait! I'm still–"

With a buzzing grunt, he buried himself right up to the third lobe in a single thrust. Melina grunted, hissing in pain and surprise as her inexperienced cunt was filled to the brim once more, only the fourth and final lobe remaining outside of her. She whimpered and huffed as she felt him press against her with all his strength, that final, terrifyingly thick segment grinding against her already stretched opening, her lips pulled taut.

“Prince, no! It's too big!" She grunted as he pushed against her, moaning as his bulging flesh ground against her rigid, sensitive clit. “F-Fekk! So big! By the Gods~"

Even in his frenzied state, Prince deduced that simply pressing wasn't going to work, to give him to feeling of total conquest that he craved. His abdomen reared back, pulling out all but his blunt, furled tip, before slamming back in. The room echoed with the lewd, wet pops of Melina's flesh surrendering his huge textured bug-cock and the low, lurid squelches of them being forced back in. Taken by instincts, the Indrel pounded into the smaller, weaker Human, conquering her and rutting her as though she were a member of his own race. Melina moaned and gasped, with every thrust it felt as though his cock was punching somewhere up around her naval, his tip hammering away deep within her belly as his rigid lobes stretched and ground every sweetspot she had, her lips and clit under constant assault as the final lobe battered at her gates. She cried out as much in surprise as pleasure as a second orgasm tore through her, her juices joining his as they ran in hot rivulets up her belly. The sounds echoing off the room now less distinct, only the constant lurid, wet noises of their flesh joining as her body slowly opened up to him, surrendered to him, adapting to his size.

'This isn't lovemaking…' Melina managed through the murk of pleasure, her eyes distant and glassy, dimly aware of the bestial noises that were now streaming from her mouth. 'This is rutting. Animalistic, inhuman, he's a beast taking a female, his female. He's making me his female! He wants to breed me!'

The image of her people's merciless and mercurial Gods popped into her pleasure-addled mind, snarling in impotent rage as she shattered her covenant to them with this affront to the natural order they created. Her Ancestors recoiling in disgust and shame as she stained their precious honor, their legacy, moaning like a beast getting bred and loving every second of it with her inhuman paramour. Melina howled into the bedsheet as his merciless mating effortlessly drew another toe-curling orgasm out of her, her voice taking on a pained, high-pitched note as Prince's final, thickest lobe finally slid inside her with a slick, wet 'pop!'. Prince growled in satisfaction, pressing his abdomen into her as he shifted about on his feet, as though to steady himself.

Melina panted and whimpered under him, trembling as stray jolts of pleasure wracked her body, echos of the most powerful climax she'd ever felt. 'Not that I've had a lot… heh heh, maybe Prince can do something about–what's that? What's happening?'

She squirmed and wriggled until she turned her face from the mattress, looking up and over her shoulder, to Prince's abdomen. The long, articulated section pulsated, undulating and pulsating. Melina gasped as she felt a sudden pressure building in her hips, with each dull, throbbing pulse of his abdomen the pressure grew. It took her a moment to realize that the base of Prince's cock, that already brutally thick segment, was getting larger!

'By my Ancestors' pathetic, tiny pricks!' She thought, incredulously. 'As if he wasn't big enough?!'

Throb after throb, pulse after pulse, the base of his cock swelled and swelled, her abused lips clinging fast to the relatively narrow stem of his as the segment ballooned from apple-sized to what felt like a small melon! Just when it felt like she was going to split apart at the seams, the swelling stopped, now far too big to pull out, locking him firmly inside her. Melina moaned as engorged bulb along with the steady pulsating throb of his heartbeat pressed hard against the inside of her hips, against the sensitive, engorged flesh there. Panic and concern over her lover's unpredictable anatomy soon gave way to dizzying waves of pleasure, her hips bucking back and forth, tugging and twisting on his locked-in organ. The pressure he was placing against her insides soon became a familiar building tension, yet another orgasm surging to the fore as he remained locked inside her. Melina shrieked in pleasure, moaning and whimpering as her own spasms only served to squeeze her stretched, sensitive flesh against his merciless organ, starting the process over again. And again. And again. Melina trembled and squirmed, face pressed into the mattress, muffling her low, throaty moans and regular high-pitched howls of pleasure.

'I'm gonna go mad if this keeps up!' She thought, concern and exultation mixing in equal measure through the constant haze of pleasure. 'Maybe I should just stay here, with Prince, with his brothers, and do this every day! I've got some lost time to make up for after all…'

It was then that she became aware of another curious sensation, a strange sort of pressure building in her belly, her naval. Prince's tip felt like it was expanding. No, not expanding, unfurling, opening like the petals of a flower. Before she could even wonder what the purpose of this new, strange sensation was, Prince loosed a deep, bass growl that echoed off the walls of the room, ringing in her ears as his abdomen gave a final, powerful pulsation, the barely audible sound of rushing liquid emanating from his body as he came. Melina cried out as a sudden, massive rush of liquid heat surge into her sex, what felt like a gallon of hot, virile bug seed filled her pussy in an instant… and kept coming.

Heat became pressure as she felt her belly began to extend, bulging outward with each surge of Indrel seed. She realized with growing alarm that Prince's glorious cock was acting as a plug, sealing her cunt as he pumped his issue into her, ensuring not a drop could escape. Panic surged to the fore as the pressure began to edge towards pain, her frail Human body wasn't made to handle such forceful, bestial breeding. She sighed in relief as the pulsing rushes of seed slowed, growing fainter and fainter before stopping completely. She felt Prince relax his grip on her wrists, releasing her and pulling her onto her side, wrapping his limbs around her trembling, sweaty body in a tender spooning embrace, nuzzling his head against her cheek.

'That was intense!' Melina reached down, taking one of Prince's pincers in one hand, the other reaching down to her abdomen, astonished to find that her belly, while taut and rounded, was hardly the balloon it felt like. 'Feels like when a baby is beginning to show. wait, can a Human and an Indrel…?'

“Forgive me, Melina," Prince buzzed in her ear, apparently back in his mind. “I am ashamed of my behavior."

“Forgive you?" She scoffed, reaching up and rubbing his hard, armored cheek. “Would a starving man forgive the man who feeds him?"

“My performance was acceptable?"

“I can't feel my legs," she giggled, noticing his body tense at the statement. “That's a good thing for Human women. It means we had almost too much fun."

“But I lost control," he stated, contrite. “Did I hurt you?"

“I'll let you know," she panted, chuckling, squeezing his still engorged cock. “Once this thing's out. How long is this supposed to last, anyway?"

“With a female Indrel, this would be the part where her body pulsates and transfers the seed to her egg chamber while the depositor slowly recedes. This process takes as much as fifteen minutes."

“Good, I like to cuddle," she said, guiding his pincers down to her swollen tummy, his claws pinching and exploring. “Careful, I'm tender right now."

“Goodness! Is that my–?!" He exclaimed in shock. “Humans do not have an egg chamber, do they? Apologies, this must be uncomfortable."

“A little, but in a good way," she said, rubbing his claws over her slightly bloated belly, the inhuman warmth of his seed radiating out through her sweat-slicked skin. “Like I ate too much. You Indrel boys always cum that much?"

“Yes. Although regular Indrel males produce comparable volumes, it is exclusively when they are in rut. My caste appear to constantly produce this quantity of seed, to the point that lack of release can cause stress and agitation," he said, buzzing what she supposed was a sigh. “It is troublesome."

“I'll bet! Feels I swallowed a melon," She said, chuckling. “You sure you didn't put a baby in me just now?"

“Baby? Ah. An infant. Humans and Indrel cannot directly interbreed," he said, evidently having missed her sarcasm. “Besides, you are not ovulating."

“How–?"

He winked at her with two of his five eyes, antennae wiggling. “You smell amazing, but not breedable."

“Says you." She giggled. “If a gallon of seed won't do the trick, I don't know what will."

“The average volume of ejaculate for an Indrel is one liter," he said, in a scholarly fashion. “Though my caste has been known to exceed this after long periods of abstinence."

“A liter? That's like a pint, isn't it?" She inquired, chuckling. “Still. Human boys got nothing on you, stud! Usually it's just a little," she blew a raspberry. “And that's it!"

“Yes, the Queen Proxies often jest this is because Indrel mate but once a season, whereas Human males release a similar quantity over the course of a year."

“Psh! Yeah I'll bet–" Melina paused, turning to face Prince. “Wait. How do you know how much Human men cum?"

He paused, blinking, his expression flat but she could tell he'd just said something he shouldn't have. “Er… are you hungry? Thirsty? I can send for Rocky to–"

“Prince."

He buzzed a sigh. “The reason my Colony is so, er, encouraging of Human traffic through our territory is that, well…" He paused, as though trying to formulate a graceful way to put this. Trying and failing. “Our Queen Proxies, and indeed much of the female population, are fixated on Humans and enjoy sexual encounters with them as often as possible. In fact, in exchange for exclusive access to our route through the mountains, the Val Salian Trading Guild regularly supplies our Colony with Human men for this purpose. These men are euphemistically referred to as diplomats."

Melina stared at him, her expression flat. “…What."

“Our Queen Proxies–" He began to reiterate, only to be silenced by her finger on his mouthparts.

“I heard you," she said. “Why? Why do they do want to fekk Human men?"

“The act is very pleasurable."

“Is it, though?" She said, rolling her eyes, reaching down to where their bodies were still locked together. “Compared to this? How can Human men even compete?"

“Exceptionally well," he replied, blithe to her bitter tone. “You see, the Human method of rapid, thrusting penetration is particularly stimulating to our females, almost to the point of addiction. The interlocking structures of Indrel genitalia makes this manner of congress impossible for us."

“Nice to hear the Gods screw over everyone, not just me…" She grumbled under her breath.

“Pardon?"

“So the boss ladies are just horny?" She eyed him up, skeptically. “That's the only reason?"

His eyes darted back and forth, antennae pulling back like a dogs' ears when scolded. “…Yes?"

She watched him for a moment, flatly amused that a creature with hard, largely immobile features had such a bad poker face. She shrugged and shook her head before planting a delicate kiss on his mouthparts. “Alright. Well, I'd be happy to be your secret diplomat. I haven't cum like that in… ever."

Prince cocked his head, confused. “But you are married? I understand this to mean you have been pair-bonded to a single male."

“I wish that meant having a good sex life," Melina grumbled, rolling her eyes. “He doesn't find me… appealing."

“Then he is a fool!" Prince asserted, perhaps just a bit too forcefully.

“He is! He's impulsive, reckless, bad with money…" Melina giggled, her smile fading as thoughts of Huck drifted back into her mind. “But that's just because he's excitable, kind, generous. He'd give you the shirt off his back in a blizzard. And he's gentle. He's a good man."

Prince took note of her flagging spirits, frowning. “I understand that physical infidelity is a taboo among some Humans. Due to your eagerness, I had presumed you were not among them. If this arrangement will cause you consternation, we can–"

“No, no, it's just that…" She paused. Was she really going to tell Prince all this? “Our marriage was arranged by our families, we didn't choose one another, and he wouldn't have chosen me if we weren't. He's a, uh, a sodomite."

“Sodomite? I'm unfamiliar with this term."

“He prefers men."

“Ah. Homosexuality," he said, nodding. “Female Indrel without access to males often engage in such behavior. This is the reason for his disinterest in you?"

“Yep," she said, nodding. “We're… just not right for each other."

Prince paused, digesting the information. “…So the deal's still on?"

“What, you mean the deal where I get paid gemstones to cum myself half-mad?" She scoffed, smiling. “I look forward to meeting your brothers."

“Truthfully?" Prince perked up, smiling. “Your infidelity will not cause you hardship?"

“If anything, Huck could do without my pestering," she said, rolling her eyes. “He'd thank you if he knew."

“Indeed? What if he were informed of the arrangement?" He said, tapping his chin. “Several of my brothers have expressed interest in the Human males sent by the Guild. If your husband is inclined towards males, perhaps he could be persuaded to participate in this venture?"

Melina opened her mouth to respond when, with a lewd, slurping pop, his cock slid out of her, followed by a veritable geyser of hot Indrel spunk. Melina moaned at the sudden loss of pressure, her pussy spasming and clenching, sending long spurts of thick, syrupy seed splattering on the bed, pooling around her hips in a hot, sticky puddle. She whimpered in trepidation and looked down, seeing the open, jizz-coated hole that used to be her practically virginal sex. Her well-bred flesh clenched and winked, as though trying to call back Prince's cock, resenting the empty feeling of his absence. She looked over to see his slowly shrinking cock, the deflating base still far larger than her fist, his tip flared open to the size of a garden rose, three fleshy lobes connected by a spongey membrane surrounding a hole she swore she could fit her finger in. She reached out, taking his cock by the base, marveling at its size. From the huge, engorged base to the flared open tip it almost spanned her forearm from wrist to elbow. This thing had been inside her?!

'Would I be able to even feel Huck after that? Or any Human man for that matter? I mean, of course I'll bounce back. Childbirth isn't a one-off after all. But even if I remarry, what man could compare to this?' Melina mused, leaning in and licking a stray drop of cum from his tip, the flavor was mild, almost neutral, like gruel, but with a hint of brine and fishbroth. 'Questions for later.'

“Are all your brothers, uh…" She said, smirking at him as she lapped away as his slowly shrinking cock, wagging the massive organ back and forth. “Like you?"

Prince buzzed and chattered his mouthparts at her ministrations, evidently sensitive after his climax. “I am considered exceptional by the females I have encountered during breeding season. The Queen Proxies chalk this up to my progenitor. He seeded more eggs of my caste than any other. My brothers come from later, more diverse clutches. I understand they are more easily handled."

“He must have been one studly bug," said Melina, watching Prince's organ begin to retreat through her fingers and back into his body. “This progenitor of yours."

“Yes…" Prince said, eyes darting back and forth, his antenna tilting back. “…He was, er, is–he's still alive, you see–quite the male. A male Indrel, of course!"

She paused and eyed him up again, certain that there was something he wasn't telling her. Her stomach clenched, rumbling audibly, evidently famished after such a rigorous ordeal.

“I will send for Rocky to bring some food and a wash basin," said Prince, antennae twitching. “Any requests?"

“A strong drink," she said, chuckling as she sat up, trying to stand on wobbling legs. “And a new set of legs!"

“We have whisky," Prince said, watching her hobble about with concern. “Are you alright? I will instruct my brothers to be more gentle."

“Not if you want me to come back, you won't!" She giggled as Rocky scuttled into the room followed closely by two other workers holding a small basin and a flagon of steaming water. “Hot water? You bugs sure know how to treat a lady. Keep this up, I may never leave!"

“Our colony has ample access to hot water from springs deep within the mountain," Prince explained as she sat down in the basin, pouring the water over her head, reaching for the soap and rag. “Regarding your husband and the preposition?"

Melina paused, rubbing her chin in thought.

Huck hummed to himself as he ground the stones on the small quartzite wheel, grinding them into the shapes they would take for the final product. The grinding wheel and its innovative foot-powered mechanism had been a design of his own making, allowing the operator to swap out various types of grinding and polishing stones for all manner of gem, powering the mechanism as they sat and worked. The bellows of their personal forge operated on a similar mechanism, allowing it to achieve consistently high temperatures in half the time! His mind was constantly abuzz with various designs and ideas for making their work easier, more efficient. Even now, he was dreaming up a water-powered device that would polish stones in a drum filled with water and sand, spinning with the never-ending flow of the river, freeing them up to carve and forge and smelt. Making more with less!

He sighed and sat back, away from the grinder, looking around at the valley around him, the tall mountains, the clear blue sky and clean, fresh air. True, they were presently living in a gutted wagon, scraping by on the trinkets they could sell, but would they truly be any better off in Val Salia? With his ideas and his wife's diligent collecting of precious stones, they could properly establish themselves here. Camp Friendly was small now, sure, but with the neverending flow of goods running through the mountains, it was almost inevitable that this quaint little weigh station would soon become a bustling town. Freed of the limitations of their caste, the two of them could expand their operation and set the ground floor of a bustling business! Especially if their supply of stones held out.

He glanced over at the chunks of lapis lazuli sitting on the breaking table, the beautiful deep blue perfectly accented by glittering bands of fool's gold. Melina had really come through this time! The basic stones she had found would work perfectly for this most current set, but the grand lumps of lapis she had found… he could pull in silver for any piece featuring those beautiful stones! Silver he could put towards not merely putting food on the table, but investing in expanding their operation!

Huck sighed, his mind drifting back to last night. Melina had been unusually insistent, her small, delicate hands desperately trying to invoke lust in him. He knew she had needs, a woman's needs, and as her husband it was his duty to satisfy them. But… there just was no getting around it, he had no such inclination towards her. He couldn't help it. Never could. It was why his family arranged the marriage in the first place, not to preserve the bloodline or strengthen the family, merely to silence the rumors of his liaisons with whatever tall, robust man caught his fancy.

Another advantage of Camp Friendly was the unending stream of rugged, lonely men who passed through the valley, always open to barter and trade with a fawning, slender, effeminate man such as himself.

Regardless, his unwilling neglect of his wife's needs ate at him. It wasn't like she could sneak out as he did and find a succor as he could. Word spread fast in a small town, especially for women, and whereas his paramours were discreet as much out of necessity as of shame, a woman would invariably earn a reputation. If only he could imagine a solution to her problems like he did when creating his devices.

Movement out the corner of his eye drew his attention. Melina walked up to the work station out behind their shack, her gait wide, almost a hobble, her rucksack evidently heavily laden. What had she found this time!?

“Melly!" He exclaimed, getting to his feet. “Goodness! That bag looks heavy!"

“It is," she grunted, making her way over to the workstation, hefting the bag and setting it on the table with a laden, craggy thud. “Here. Take a look."

Huck made his way over as his wife upended the rucksack, revealing lump after lump of exquisite lapis. His large brown eyes bulged out of his head, mouth hanging open at the haul. There had to be two, maybe three gold moths worth of stones on the table, and that was just what they could get selling to dye-makers, much less jewelry!

“How…" He muttered, hurriedly examining each stone. “Where…? There's so much!"

“And that's not even the half of it." She reached into the sack and pulled out a large, green rock, setting it on the table. He grabbed it and held it up to the sun, gasping as the light filtered deep into the stone: imperial jade. She chuckled at his reaction, reaching into her waistband, producing a small bag and pouring it out, scores of rounded polished rubies clattering on the tabletop.

“Melina! Th-this is–! And-and the lapis!" He sputtered, turning to his wife, a small, knowing smirk on her freckled face. “Where on earth did you find all this?!"

“On earth? More like under earth," she said, pulling up a stool and beckoning him to do the same. “I guess you could say I've found a, uh, supplier."

“I don't…" He began to say, eyes flashing with the realization. “Under earth? The Indrel?"

Melina nodded, her smile fading as concern blossomed on her face. “They dig up all kinds of stuff making their tunnels. Before they learned Humans value stones like these, they just threw it out."

“So you've, what, found a pile of Indrel tailings?" Huck ventured, arcing an eyebrow. “Dug through that to find all this?"

“Uh…" She paused, rapping her fingers on the table. “…No."

“So how–?"

Melina reached out, takin his hand in hers, her green eyes locking with his browns. “Huck, look. I love you, you know that? And I know you love me. But I know that you don't love me as a wife, or as a woman." He opened his mouth to repudiate, only to be silenced by a raised hand. “Huck. It's okay. Really, it is. I've always known. I know if it weren't for your family, you'd have never married me. If we'd been born elsewhere, you'd have found a man to make you happy."

Huck sighed and leaned back, nodding. “I'm sorry I haven't been the husband, the man, you deserve. If you want to… separate, I understand."

“A divorce?" Melina eyed him up for a moment before shaking her head. “That's not what I was getting at. Huck, we're good for each other in every other way. We get along, our skills jibe, we just aren't husband and wife. Not really."

“So, what are you getting at?"

Melina paused again, eyes darting about nervously. “Okay, so, my supplier. He's willing to give us as many gems as we can stomach… for a price. For a service. For discretion."

Huck cocked an eyebrow, glancing hungrily at the lump of jade on the table. “Such as…?"

Huck sat in silence as Melina laid out the proposition, her negotiations with this 'Prince' and their subsequent consummation of the deal. Even her suggestion that he play a part in the transaction for the bevy of precious stones prompted nary a flinch from him.

“So… that's the long and short of it," she said, smiling meekly, gesturing at the riches on their table. “It is what it is."

“This is…" Huck muttered after a long pause. “Huh."

Her face fell. “Yeah."

“I mean, the stones, the supply, we'd be rich! Incredibly rich!" He shot to his feet, gesturing at their 'house', at their workshop. “No more drafty shack! A proper forge and crafting room! We-we could even hire people to do the work for us with all that money! Camp Friendly's growing, and we could be a part of that. A big part! But… this arrangement you have with them… with him… It's immoral! It's unnatural! Blasphemous!"

Melina shied away, an ashamed blush forming in her cheeks. “I know…"

Huck crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against the work table. “Let's do it."

Melina blinked in surprise, looking up at him, mouth hanging open in shock.

“Melly, please," he said, smiling wryly. “Immoral. Unnatural. Blasphemous. I've been called all that and worse by the priests back home! At least this way we'll be making some real gains, not just scraping by."

A sad, sympathetic smile lit up her face as she got to her feet. “Huck…"

“I love you, Melly," he said, taking her hands in hers. “Not as a wife or a woman, true, but I do love you. You've always been the sensible one, keeping us afloat. This deal you have with Prince… well… it won't really change anything between us, will it?"

Melina rushed forward, happy tears in her eyes, and pulled Huck into a tight hug. “I love you too, Huck. You're a good man. You've always been a good man."

“Just a lousy husband," he said, laughing softly. “Oh, Melly. What would I do without you?"

“Find yourself a good man, probably," she said, giggling despite her tears.

“Speaking of…" he said, coyly. “This Prince of yours. Is he handsome?"

She frowned playfully at this. “Back off! He's mine!"

“You mentioned they'd be open to, well…" said Huck, clearing his throat as he rubbed the back of his neck. “What was it like?"

Melina smiled wolfishly, a blush burning in her cheeks. “Why don't we talk about it over a cup of ale? The drink will make this tale easier to swallow."

Huck's cheeks flushed slightly at the implication. “You had my curiosity before. Now you have my attention."

The caravans rolled through, as ever. More and more wagons stopped and stayed, new buildings being added to the weigh station with almost every pass as enterprising people looked about, their keen eyes spying opportunities along such a bustling trade route.

A merchant approached a stand in front of a large, well-made wood and mortar building. The stand was purpose built, with clean-cut planks and a bright orange awning overhead, the callsign of a redsmith. Sitting behind the stand was a beautiful young woman with pale freckled skin, bright green eyes, and long, curly red-blonde hair. Surrounding her were displays bearing rings, necklaces, pendants, wrist bands, and all manner of immaculately crafted jewelry fashioned from copper, tin, and bronze, inlaid with shining polished green jade, deep red rubies, and fool's gold-banded lapis lazuli.

“The craftsmanship is exquisite! Ymirian, isn't it? I can tell from the style!" The merchant exclaimed, examining a ring consisting of many bands of polished metal, each band terminating in a clasp around a carved jade centerpiece. “And these stones, they're enormous! Wherever did you get them?"

The woman smiled demurely. “All manner of goods pass through Camp Friendly, sir. Make the right friends and one can get just about anything."

“Is that so?" The Merchant chuckled, gesturing at the jade-bearing ring and a lapis-bearing necklace. “These two items please. My wife will love to show off some authentic Ymirian wares to her friends."

“That will be two silver moths for the necklace and two for the ring."

“So cheap! How do you procure such stones charging so little?"

She smiled knowingly, handing him the goods in exchange for four silver pieces. “A trade secret. You understand."

“Beautiful and cagey!" The Merchant said, taking the finery and wagging a bejeweled finger at her. “Your husband is a lucky man."

Her smile only seemed to widen. “That he is."

“F-f-feeeekk!" Huck whined into the mattress, panting and grunting as the bull Indrel sawed in and out of his hole, his flesh releasing and accepting the brutishly thick lobes in a series of wet pops and lewd slurps, his toned asscheeks rippling with every full sheathing by the rampant insect. The slim, effeminate Human whimpered, his modest cock erect and bouncing with each thrust, twitching and spurting milky precum with every hilt and pullout. “D-Duke! N-not so har-ahn~!"

His cock tensed, flexing as spurt after spurt of seed stained the thoroughly soiled mattress, stars popping behind his eyes as Duke continued breeding his loud, sloppy cunt. A pincer reached down, grabbing Huck by the base of his head and pulling him face to face with another throbbing, furled Indrel cock.

“Oh, I'm sorry, Baron," panted Huck, smirking and taking the dripping organ into his mouth. “Here, let me–URK!!"

Baron buzzed and thrust forward, lodging the tip of his dick into Huck's throat, the Human only able to stave off suffocation by breathing through his nose in tandem with the long, heedless strokes, the gagging slurps of his throat and mouth mixing with the lurid squelching pops of his hole as the rampant Indrel male used him from both ends. Each minute was a small eternity of rutting and thrusting, his soft, flexible Human body conquered over and over and over again. His small, slender prick constantly dribbling pre between the occasional spurt of increasingly thin, watery seed as his guts and hole were brutally plundered. A low, bass growl from both Duke and Baron signaled their approaching climax, their claws digging into his flesh almost painfully. Huck moaned as Duke hilted himself a final time, his base swelling to the size of a pomegranate, tip blossoming deep inside. The Human reached up in a practiced motion, hands clasping around Baron's base as it swelled, choking back a gag and taking a deep breath as the tip unfurled in the back of his throat. At once, the Indrel came, huge surges of hot, thick cum burst forth from their cocks, the sound and force of their climax reverberating throughout his body. Both Indrel rumbled, holding the Human in place as their abdomens pulsated, injecting their pent-up seed into their shuddering, willing receptacle. Huck bit back a moan as his prick spat a final few drops of seed, his insides stretched taut around Duke's huge, swollen cock, his ass quivering as over a pint of hot bug spunk flooded his guts, surging deep into his innards, filling them with a feverish, radiating heat. Huck focused on taking breaths between swallowing pulse after pulse of thick jizz Baron was pumping directly into his stomach, squeezing his throbbing fist-sized base with his hands as he did. Once their orgasms finally tapered off, Duke and Baron pulled away, their cocks followed by an eruption of thick, syrupy seed spurting from both ends of their breeding toy.

“Gllrk…" Huck gurgled, swallowing one last mouthful of cum before smiling up at them. “Guh… g-got another one in you?"

Duke and Baron smirked at one another, a wordless conversation passing between them, before stepping aside to reveal their three other brothers, Earl, Marquis, and Viceroy, the latter of whom, judging from his height and build, shared a progenitor with Melina's treasured Prince.

Huck chuckled, wiping off his chin. “I suppose that'll do…"

“You know what they say," said Melina, smirking. “Love your work, and you won't work a day in your life."

The Merchant chuckled at this, tipping his beret to her. “A pleasure doing business, madam."

“The pleasure is all mine."