Shanna of Clan Wolf pulled hard on the reins of her
great black horse. Her deep green eyes
flicked from side to side. Something
was not right. Her hand went to her
sword. All about her the great forest
loomed. She had been riding through the
dense woods for three days now and had encountered numerous dangers, both
animal and human. But all had shied
away from battle with the tall Amazon.
Shanna was a magnificent woman, standing over six
feet tall and powerfully muscled from years of training in the arts of
war. Despite her youthful eighteen
years, she was a formidable opponent in battle and all who encountered her
seemed to sense this. Her appearance
was rendered even more impressive by the great crested helmet she wore, which
added another foot to her height. Her
hands were covered by heavy leather gauntlets and her body was protected by a
full-length coat of bright mail that reached to her thighs. Knee-length heavy leather boots completed
her attire. It was small wonder that
any potential enemy gave her a wide berth.
Two weeks ago she had been sent on her first quest
by the Archpriestess of Clan Wolf. It
was of a specific nature, intended to try her skills to the limit. She was to seek out and kill the vile trader
in women, Gregor the Despoiler. He
would not be an easy man to eliminate, being surrounded by numerous hirelings
and secure in his fortress near the slave-trading center of El Arish.
Shanna was still a few days ride from El Arish, in
the heavily forested Black Mountains.
Her journey would take her over the mountain pass and into the drier
regions bordering the Great Sand Waste.
She rode alone, as befitted a novitiate of Clan Wolf
undergoing her first trial. If she were
successful she would be entrusted with more important quests and eventually be
allowed to ride with the adepts of the clan.
Shanna was supremely confident of success. Few members of Clan Wolf could match her
swordmanship and none could match her overcall martial skills. She had, however, learned to be cautious in
the two weeks since she had left her clan lair. Several times she had blundered into traps set to ensnare an
unwary traveler and only her formidable combat skills had allowed her to fight
her way out of her predicament.
She scanned the thick undergrowth the overhung the
trail. There it was again, a faint
rustling in the brush, as of some animal or human tracking her. She turned her horse to face the sound, at
the same time keeping her senses tuned to avoid any surprise attack from
behind. Suddenly, the brush parted in
front of her and an exhausted-looking young girl in a tattered dress spilled
out onto the trail. It looked as if she
had been forcing her way through the brush in complete terror.
As the girl spotted Shanna, a look of fear passed
over her face. She fell to her knees,
her hands held in front of her in supplication.
“Mistress,” the girl gasped, “please help me. My village has been best upon by slavers.”
“Where is your village, child?” responded the
Amazon. This was something of interest,
a cry for help that tied in with her quest.
“I can show you,” the girl panted, “it is not far.”
Without waiting for Shanna’s reaction, the girl
turned and walked unsteadily down the trail.
Shanna sat for an instant, considering the situation. If the girl was leading her into a trap, her
act was certainly most convincing. It
was hard to believe that she had been waiting in the forest, her dress torn and
her hair disheveled for some unexpected stranger to ride down the trail.
Shanna spurred her horse forward, and scooped the
girl up as she reached her. “We can
move faster this way,” she said, “just point out the direction.”
The girl directed her down the trail for about a
hundred yards until the path forked.
She indicated that Shanna should take the left fork. Shanna moved down the trail at a canter, her
powerful steed covering the ground rapidly.
A minute farther on the trail forked again. This time the girl indicated the right fork. Shanna followed her directions and the trail
curved to the left and then opened up into a large clearing. There the Amazon and her guide came upon a
scene of pandemonium.
At least a dozen armed men were rampaging through a small
forest village. The entire hamlet did
not have more than eight houses along with a few outbuildings. Shanna would have thought that such a place
was hardly worth attacking, but she knew that the real value of the tiny
community was its human population. The
slavers would strip the town clean of anyone over the age of six and under
forty, leaving it depopulated and plundered.
Shanna dropped the girl at the side of the trail and
spurred her horse to the gallop, shouting her war cry as she did so. The slavers, seemed paralyzed by the sight
and sound of the fiercesome warrior descending upon them. Shanna’s blade took off the heads of two of
them before they even raised their weapons.
After that there was absolute panic as the erstwhile slavers ran in
every direction. Shanna rode after them
determined that as few as possible should escape. True to their nature, not a man stood up to her. The encounter was over in a matter of
seconds. Shanna was victorious in the
center of the village. Scattered around
her were a half dozen bodies of those who had been too slow to escape. She dropped to the ground and carefully
wiped her bloody blade on the costume of one of the men she had executed.
Her attack had been so sudden that even the people
she had come to rescue ran to the shelter of the trees, uncertain of what to
make of this ferocious female warrior.
It was the young girl who brought them back. Running from the edge of the village, she fell at Shanna’s feet
in a position of supplication. Seeing
her kissing the boots of the triumphant Amazon the rest of the village, some
thirty people in all rallied about her.
“We thank you gracious lady,” said a middle aged
peasant, who Shanna took to the village headman. After that she was surrounded by villagers who sang her praises
and thanked her profusely.
Shanna was anxious to be on her way, but the
villagers would not let her leave. Not
wanting to insult them, Shanna was forced to accept their hospitality and stay
the night.
She did not get much sleep that night, the villagers
celebrated her coming by bringing out the best of everything they had and
plying her almost continuously with food and drink. Eventually, however, the fires of celebration died down and she
was able to catch a few hours of rest.
She awoke before dawn. Like most peasants, the villagers arose early and were beginning
their work day. It took some time, but
Shanna was able to extricate herself from their hospitality by convincing the
villagers that she had other peasants to save farther down the trail. This seemed to satisfy them and she was able
to mount up and move on, but not without having several days supply of food and
drink thrust upon her.
That day’s ride was uneventful and she stopped
early. She had only managed about two
hour’s sleep the previous night, and wanted to catch up on her rest. Whenever she could she tried to stop at a
peasant’s or woodsman’s hut for the night, but on this occasion decided that
she could better ensure a night’s rest by sleeping in the open.
It did not take her long to get settled. She had plenty of food from the village and
she ate well. Then, she removed her
heavy chain mail coat and covered herself in her cloak. It was always risky sleeping outside, but
her war-horse was trained to keep alert.
Anyone who tried to sneak up on her was sure to be discovered in enough
time for her to get ready.
* * *
Derrec Lightfingers crept silently through the night
forest. Beside him was his friend and
fellow blackguard Orest. Orest had no
last name that he would admit to. Most
forest brigands liked to keep their past secret.
Derrec parted the bush in front of him. He looked at Orest. The two exchanged a knowing glance. Just in front of them was a small clearing. The dying embers of a campfire glowed
faintly in the darkness.
“You see,” whispered Derrec, “I told you we would
catch up to her.”
Orest nodded.
“Yes, he said, “but now that we have found her what next? I don’t fancy being chopped up like our
mates back at the village.”
“Yes,” Derrec agreed, “but she is worth a fortune if
we capture her. Can you imagine what a
virgin Amazon of Clan Wolf would be worth on the slave market? We’d never have to work again.”
“Sure,” replied Orest, “but there is a reason she’s
so valuable. Clan Wolf warriors aren’t
easy to capture and they are the most dangerous women in Lemuria.”
“Right,” said Derrec, “so we’ll have to trick
her. Here’s what we’ll do…”
* * *
Shanna’s eyes popped wide open, instantly awake, as
she had been trained. Something had
spooked hr horse and he had snorted a warning.
She picked up her sword and shield from the ground beside her and rolled
away from the dim glow of the fire.
Her night vision was especially keen, and she could
make out a shadowy figure just beyond the edge of her campsite. Suddenly she raised her shield. Thunk! A heavy object bounced off
the center of the shield. She had
sensed rather than seen the object that had been hurled at her, but her catlike
reflexes had saved her.
Instantly she was on her feet and moving toward her
adversary. She was not wearing her
heavy coat of chain mail, but there was no thought of flight. Clan Wolf Amazons were trained to respond
with aggression, not retreat.
The shadowy figure darted away from her, running
down the forest trail. As he ran across
a patch of moonlight she saw that he was dressed like one of the slavers she
had cut to pieces the previous day.
Somehow he must have managed to follow her. Well, that was going to be his misfortune. He should never have been stupid enough to
mess with a member of Clan Wolf a second time.
Shanna took off after the fleeing slaver. Her superb physical condition enabled her to
gain on him with ease. She would make
him pay for daring to follow her!
She was almost upon him now. Shanna could hear the hoarse gasping of the
man’s breath as he strained to try and outdistance her. Suddenly, he seemed to stumble, falling flat
on his face. Now she had him at her
mercy! She raised her sword and rushed
in for the kill.
“What…?”
Shanna gasped. She had run right
into a net strung across the path. What
she had taken to be a stumble was actually her quarry diving beneath the
net. She had run straight into a trap!
Her forward progress had tangled her inextricably in
the net. If it had been daylight and
she had enough time, she might have been able to extricate herself, but she
found herself hopelessly ensnared.
Struggling to break free, she merely succeeded in entangling herself
even more. In addition, she was not
alone. The man she had been chasing had
picked himself up, and was busy pulling the net even more tightly about
her. He was joined by a second man and
between the two of them they soon had her completely immobilized.
For the first time in her eighteen years, Shanna was
close to panic. This was not supposed
to happen. She was a novitiate of Clan
Wolf, the most feared and respected of Amazons. She could not be taken by such a simple ruse.
Her situation seemed hopeless. The net was so tightly wound about her body
that she could hardly move her arms.
She struggled mightily, but finally gave up. She was not even remotely close to escaping and it might be
better to conserve her strength for a more opportune moment.
“Ha,” Derek exulted, “I told you we could get the
bitch. She’s not going anywhere. Now all we have to do is pack her up.”
Together, Derrec and Orest wound a length of rope
about the netting, encircling Shanna’s body from head to toe.
“Keep an eye on her,” ordered Derrec, “I’ll get her
horse and gear.”
A few minutes later, Derrec returned leading
Shanna’s war-horse. Each man took one
end of her and heaved her over the horse’s back. Then they secured her to the back of the animal by passing a rope
beneath its belly and connecting her hands and feet.
Once they had finished the two men stepped back to
admire their handiwork.
“What a prize,” said Orest. “I get hard just thinking about her.”
“Yeah,” replied Derrec, “she’d be a great fuck. But she’s worth one hell of a lot more as a
virgin.”
“Too bad,” said Orest, patting Shanna’s behind
through the netting. “I’d really like
to nail her.”
“With the money we’re gonna make off this beauty,
we’re gonna be able to afford all the regular slave girls we want. One for every day of the week.”
“Still,” said Orest, “it’s tempting. A chance to nail a Clan Wolf virgin comes
along only once in a thousand moons.”
“Don’t even think about it,” cautioned Derrec. “Just think of the big payoff at the slave
market.”
Shanna’s ears burned at this conversation. She was being talked about as if she was a
piece of meat hanging in the window of the butcher’s shop! But there wasn’t much she could do about it. Even though the rope that held her hands and
feet had been lashed around the outside of the netting, she was still
hopelessly constrained. She would have
to hope that somewhere along the forest road her captors would make a mistake
that would give her a chance to escape.
But Derrec and Orest were experienced slave
traders. They made no mistake. As a matter of fact, her predicament
actually got worse after the first day.
After they stopped for the night Orest sat on her to prevent her from
making any sudden moves, while Derrec carefully cut away a little bit of the
netting so that he could get at her wrists.
Then he shackled her wrists together behind her back. Shanna resisted as best she could, but
Derrec was patient and thorough. When
he was finished she was more hopelessly captive than before.
Having made sure that her wrists were secure, Derrec
then removed most of the netting and shackled her ankles. The heavy iron links were easily capable of
resisting even Shanna’s strength.
Chaining her in this way made it easier for the
slavers to handle her. Derrec had left
enough slack in the manacles on her ankles for her to be able to take a short
step. This way he was able to escort
her to the side of the trail so that she could complete her bodily functions.
Shanna found the whole experience mortifying. She was no prude, but having a man watch her
complete the most personal of actions was incredibly degrading. She found it almost as embarrassing to have
Derrec feed her. But her captors left
her little choice. They took no chances
on having her escape.
It took three days to complete the journey to El
Arish. During all of that time Shanna
was given no opportunity to escape.
After the first day, he captors had forced her to walk while they shared
her horse. This was another aspect of
her capture that Shanna found upsetting.
Her war-horse was supposed to be a faithful animal, trained to serve her
only. Apparently the animal had no
loyalty, as it allowed her captors to ride it without any opposition.
Finally, her humiliating march came to an end. Topping a small rise, Derrec pulled on the
leash her had attached to her neck. He
pointed into the distance. “There it is
my lovely, El Arish. In a day or so
you’ll have a new master, and Orest and me will be several thousand pieces of
gold richer.”
Shanna followed his pointing finger. There in the distance were the spires of the
infamous desert city, the home of the most notorious slave market in all of
Lemuria. Her heart rate increased and
she felt a sense of fear deep in her stomach.
Derrec jerked her into motion again.
Stumbling, Shanna was dragged forward to meet her fate.