"The exploration through the jungle was hazardous, and several confrontations with wild animals resulted in casualties. One party was rescued by a group of the human-like beings they were seeking. At first sight the Thurnians mistook their rescuers for men like themselves, but their rescuers' enlarged ears and pungent odour made the Thurnians reconsider. It is from this initial encounter that the newly discovered race came to be called "elves", although they were clearly not the creatures of fairy tales. The derogatory term "stinking elves" also came into being about this time. It would be several years before Thurnian scholars accepted the obvious, and that both the excellent hearing and pungent body odour of the elves help them survive against the wild animals of the jungle. Similarly, it was a later discovery that the odour emitted by elves weakens as they become older, making them easier prey for wild animals. Consequently, there are few elves who could be considered to be old and wise. The young elves of the rescue party took the Thurnian men to their village. Despite the difficulty in communicating with the elves, the Thurnian men soon made a fateful discovery that had far reaching consequences for Thurn, and spelt disaster for the peace-loving elves.
"Nature dictates that Thurnian men can only have an erection when they smell the pheromones of a woman in heat. In Thurn, this only occurs for a few weeks during summer, in the short period known as the rutting season. It's nature's way of ensuring newborn babies are born in spring, and therefore stand a better chance of survival over the following bitterly cold Thurnian winter. Winters on the southern continent are mild, so nature has adapted elven women differently. Elven women are fertile all year round, and in heat for ten days every month. When the Thurnian men notice their cocks swelling in the presence of elven women, they overcome their distaste for the elven body odour, and react in a predicable way. What causes the disaster for the elven community, is that after seeing the size of the Thurnian men's cocks, the elven women are equally eager to have sex with the Thurnian men. Both races are victims of their own natural desires, and neither can resist the powerful urge to mate. Elven males look on in helpless wonder as their womenfolk literally line up to be fucked. By comparison to huge solid shafts of the Thurnian men, their own cocks are puny.
"Eventually the exhausted Thurnian men retreat from the elven village, and report back to Gregori. Their tales of wild sexual abandon are initially disbelieved, and the subject of much mirth. However, a few days later elven women start appearing on the edge of the Thurnian camp. At first the women are told to go away. Whether they don't understand the meaning of the words being spoken or are deliberately refusing to leave the Thurnian men alone, is impossible to know. Before long the perimeter guards start fraternising with the elven women. Two days later, the elven women are almost permanent residents of the Thurnian camp. Even Gregori succumbs to the delights the elven women have to offer. History doesn't record who made the fateful decision to take some of the elven women back to Thurn when the expedition completes its mission. Gregori reputedly had initially refused permission for his men to have elven women on his ships, but after facing a near mutiny, he relented. As a consequence, over a hundred elven women were passengers on the ships returning to Thurn. With the need to reach Thurn before winter, the overcrowded ships set sail.
"With over twenty elven women in the hold of each Thurnian ship, the conditions on board were very cramped. Food and water supplies needed to be strictly rationed. However, the worst problem was the stench. The pungent body odour of the elves competed with the frequent seasickness among the passengers and crew as the rough seas tossed the vessels about. Fortunately for all concerned, the elven women were docile and obedient, even if they only understood a few Thurnian words. When the seas were calm, they happily serviced the Thurnian men's eager cocks. However, before many weeks had passed, the crew noticed that fewer of the elven women were in heat, which made it impossible for the men to have an erection. The elven women tried their best to satisfy their own sexual needs, but the Thurnian men were impotent without the musk of a woman in heat. Fortunately, the journey north was faster than the outward trip, and the coast of Thurn was sighted five weeks after departing the southern continent. Navigation was rudimentary, and a further week was spent sailing along the coast trying to locate a landmark that appeared on their maps. Eventually the port of Thurn was reached, and the men of the expedition were welcomed home as heroes.
"While the returning Thurnian men were hailed as heroes, their cargo of over a hundred elven women was less well received. The strong body odour of the elves was only the first of many complaints from the citizens of Thurn. For several days, the elves were confined to the ships' holds. Only when the Emperor and his council learned of the elves' ability to have sex all year round, did any solution other than banishment become possible. The ruling council hastily made several contradictory laws governing the treatment of the elves. Since slavery is abhorrent and illegal in Thurn, it was necessary to classify the elves as animals so that they could be sold to interested Thurnian men. Finally, the elves were moved to a large open shed on the outskirts of the city where their strong odour would only offend the poorer denizens of Thurn. There the elves were branded with a two letter identifier and auctioned off to a wide variety of Thurnian men. After a few months it became apparent that many elves were pregnant. A further surprise awaited both the Thurnians and elven women when it was discovered that every elven child sired by a Thurnian father was female and a clone of her mother.
"A catastrophic discovery awaited the captains of the expedition's ships. During the journey north, more than the usual number of leaks in the ships' hulls had been noticed. Once in port, a closer inspection revealed that the tropical waters of the southern continent were home to tiny sea creatures that found the ships' wooden hulls a tasty meal. The ships began sinking at their moorings. Worried that the sea creatures might infest other Thurnian ships, the Emperor ordered that the five ships of the expedition be burnt. Gregori was nearly bankrupted by the loss of his ships. He was only mollified when the Emperor offered him two elven women the Emperor had acquired. The captains obeyed the Emperor's orders, but they did nothing to dispel the subsequent false rumours that the reason for the burning was that the foul stench of the "stinking elves" had made the holds of the ships unusable. Proposals for further expeditions to the southern continent were abandoned, and the one hundred and seven elven women became the nucleus of the elven population of Thurn. Names were meaningless when dealing with elf clones, so the practise of using a serial number came into being. The number identified the original elf, and the ordinal and generation of her offspring.
"It was soon established that the strong body odour of the elves was an evolutionary development to deter the large beasts of the southern continent from attacking them. Unfortunately, the elves' natural odour was repugnant to Thurnian women. Men also disliked the smell but overcame their distaste when the opportunity to have sex with an elf presented itself. When not required for sex, elves were invariably consigned to outdoor work, or to jobs in mines and odorous manufacturing industries such as tanneries and iron works. It is through their work in manufacturing that the elven population developed excellent skills at leatherwork and metalcraft. Farmers were also regular employers of elves, using the elves' strong odour to deter wolves and bears from attacking their livestock. Although the elves were not completely immune to the effects of the cooler Thurnian climate, particularly the brutally cold winters, they adapted remarkably well to their new home. Most elves managed to survive the elements with only the thin clothing their owners provided. Although required to understand and speak the Thurnian language, the strict laws prohibited the elves from learning to read and write. However, many of the elves' own traditions and customs were allowed to continue.
"Young elven children are brought up in crèches, mirroring the elves traditional practise in their homeland. When the children reach their seventh year, they are considered old enough to work. By the time the first generation of Thurnian elves reached their teens, the laws affecting elves had been amended. From then on it is the adolescent elves who work on the farms, and in the mines and industry. The fertile adult elves were reassigned, and, as now, are mainly confined to city ghettoes. This ensured that they are more accessible for sex with Thurnian men. The older generation are now called Elf Maidens and are no longer considered animals. This change of status became necessary when some legal expert pointed out that men having sex with animals was both repugnant and probably against Thurnian law (although nobody could determine which law). In the fifty years since the first arrival of elves in Thurn, the population of elves has increased rapidly. This is despite the number of fatalities among the poorly trained adolescent elves working in the mines and industries. In addition, many adolescent elves go missing each year on the long journey between the remote farms and mines where they must work for the season, and the city ghettoes, where they stay over winter."