Hunter Of Evil Ch 05

Chapter 05: Love's Price

7 years ago...

"Why not?" Alaine screamed.

"A knight's path is not suitable for a woman's feet. Return home and bear sons that might fight for the glory of our people." With that, the quartermaster turned away, leaving the young girl fuming.

Whirling on her heel, she stormed out of the courtyard muttering curses that would net her a fortnight's worth of indulgences. The blood was pounding so hard in her ears she failed to notice the voice addressing her. "What?" she snapped, frustrated that her rage had been interrupted.

"I asked, 'Why did you even try'?" said a young man leaning against the inner wall of the castle. He couldn't have been more than a few years older than her. His hair was cut short, almost to his scalp, and his face was incapable of growing more than a faint stubble. His clothes were the rags of a peasant.

"Why not?" Alaine growled. "I can fight as well as any man out there."

"No... you can't," said the boy, gesturing for her follow him.

Alaine's fists tightened till even her trimmed nails drew blood from her palms. She remembered the last time a boy drew her to a secluded place. Right now she relished the chance to bust some teeth. "Want to test me?"

"Man is born to fight and give death. Woman is born to birth and give life," the stranger replied.

Alaine rolled her eyes; didn't she just have this conversation?

"There are but three ways to deal with this reality," he continued. "You can give in and go back to rear your brood. You can deny it and try to fight against nature Herself. Or you can accept it and adapt."

"What do you mean?" asked Alaine, her curiosity drowning out her anger.

In a heartbeat the boy spun around and drove his fist into Alaine's left shoulder, knocking her to the ground. "Most men will be bigger and stronger than you," he said, standing over her. "They know this and will use it. You must utilize your speed to outmaneuver them." The boy held out his hand. "Want to learn?"

Alaine considered the offer in the dirt while she rubbed her numb arm. "What's your name?"

"Murdoch."

As usual, the training of pages began with winter, a final contest to be held when spring dawned. Murdoch set up a place for Alaine to stay in secret and every moment that they were not training, she did chores to build her stamina and muscle. By the time spring arrived, she had begun to blossom into womanhood. She found her attraction to Murdoch growing while she noticed he seemed to be growing attracted to her as the training honed and shaped her body into luscious curves. Too soon the spring was coming and a trial was to be held for the pages. The winner would be given the rare chance to choose the knight they served. The rest would be chosen by their masters as usual, having exposed the dearth of their skill.

"I'm not hungry," said Alaine as Murdoch set a plate of stew in front of her.

"Neither are any of the other contestants," he replied as he moved behind her. "You'll need the edge over them. Swallow past your stomach's protests."

Alaine tried to eat though it was difficult to move the food past the knot in her stomach.

"We have to press your breasts to your body and I have some large clothes you can wear to hide your hips," said Murdoch as he cut her hair to make it look more boyish.

"You think I can win?" she asked.

"Without a doubt," he answered as he leaned over and kissed her cheek.

5 years ago...

"You must be the man I've heard so much about."

Murdoch nodded as he extended his hand in greeting. "A pleasure to meet you bishop."

"And you as well," said Stephen, shaking. After a cursory bow, the two turned to survey the church's garden as they walked. "I hear you will be up for knighthood soon."

"Thanks to your gracious opportunity," said the squire.

"It was the least I could do in payment for your selfless services to the faith. Though I must wonder..."

"About?" asked Murdoch as he stopped with an inquisitive expression.

"Just how deep your commitment is to this land," answered Stephen as he studied a sprouting tomato plant.

"I will serve all my brethren who live upon this shore regardless of nation or master, as long as I live."

Stephen couldn't help but chuckle a little. "I see you've memorized your oath very well. And I have no doubt that the spirit of it impresses upon your heart as well as the words." The bishop stood to faced the younger man. "How willing are you to serve?"

"What is the point of this?"

"You must understand... Murdoch, we're losing the fight against the fey."

The young man stood frozen a moment as the words sank in. Finally he muttered, "I've... always suspected..."

"We have an idea – a plan which we need a volunteer for."

"Me? Why?"

"It's... Murdoch you're one out of a hundred. You have the skills of a knight, but lack the blood of a noble."

"Oh. You can't risk one of the precious nobility. So why not me? A worthless commoner with the fighting skills of the trained."

Stephen sighed, "I wouldn't have put it so crudely."

"What has to be done?"

"There is a curse that will be placed upon you. After that, you should have the strength and power to defeat any fey you encounter, possibly even a few dragons – though I would prefer you refrained from trying."

Murdoch studied the bishop a moment. Though he had tried to keep his face cheerful, there was a sadness blanketing his eyes. "What will I have to give up?"

"Large parts of your humanity no doubt. Also... you... can't be a knight."

The last sentence hurt worse than any blow Murdoch had ever suffered.

"You will have the full support and backing of every royalty in the world. You will also be granted unlimited traveling rights and complete autonomy – though some supporters might withdraw if you... disappoint them."

"I want a helper too. A friend whose presence might slow the loss of my soul."

Stephen could not hide his delight at Murdoch's acceptance. "Of course. We'll search the country for-"

"No. I know who I want and I can tell you where to find her..."

Today

Alaine knew patience was a virtue but right now she was not feeling very virtuous. She had studied every detail of the stain-glass windows, paintings and sculptures in the church and was on the verge of breaking some when the deacon finally returned.

"Bishop Stephen will see you now," the deacon said with a bow.

"Ah, Alaine! Good to see you," said Stephen as she stormed into his office and he rose to greet her. Her anger was restrained enough for her to remember proper decorum and she bent to kiss his ring. "How is Murdoch doing?" he asked as he sat back down. "I heard the two of you had quite the crisis."

"We were buried alive, but the chasing werewolf dug us out to have her vengeance."

"And I assume Murdoch finished her off.

Alaine nodded. "What has been done to him?"

"I thought you knew."

"I want details!"

Ferdinand sighed and took a moment to compose his thoughts. "Some... pagan cultures believed they could imbue their warriors with the spirits of beasts. A few of these warriors grew out of control, escaped, and became werewolves. Nosferatu wages a deal with the Devil, thereafter him and his progeny are cursed to wander the Earth. Throughout the world numerous accounts can be found of men gaining great power at a price. We... figured out a way to curse Murdoch."

"With?"

The bishop shrugged. "I don't know what it was. Some viking traders had brought a beast unlike anything I'd ever seen from a place they called 'beyond the horizon.' It seemed ferocious enough so it's essence was bonded to Murdoch."

"Can you do it again?"

Ferdinand shook his head. "The creature disintegrated when the ritual was finished and we do not have another."

Alaine shook her head. "I mean... could you use a different animal?"

***

The water was cold enough to steal breath out of his lungs, but after sitting beneath the falls for a fortnight, Murdoch had grown numb to the temperature. Holding up his hands, the warrior sighed. The long black talons still stuck out from the tips of his fingers. He didn't have to look at his reflection to guess that his eyes were still completely black save for the red dots that were now his pupils. The tough battle against the wolves seemed to have brought out more of Murdoch's inhumanity. Would he ever be able to visit a human settlement again? Motion out of the corner of his eye interrupted his musings. Dropping back a little deeper into the waterfall, he studied the cloaked figure standing on the banks that had somehow gotten closer to him than he should have allowed.

"Austin told me you were still here," the figure said.

Murdoch stood up and back out of the falls so they weren't drowning out his ears because he thought he knew that voice. "Alaine?"

Reaching up, she undid the clasp on the cloak and let it fall to the ground, revealing that it had been her only piece of clothing. Murdoch felt a stirring in his loins more powerful than anything he'd ever experienced (even that night with the succubus) and his heart began thundering against his ribs as she approached. Like a dam bursting, the realization of how deeply he'd fallen in love with her consumed him.

Before she reached the water, Murdoch pulled his gaze from her stunning, sparkling eyes and realized there was something different about her. Her short dark hair was not tucked behind the ears as usual, but instead a pair of triangle, furry ears stood on the top of her hair, as dark as her hair. Other stripes of dark fur followed the curves of her body. There were a pair of points just beneath both eyes that accented her cheekbones. Two more stripes of fur began just below her luscious breasts and circled around her back before twisting down her thighs to perfectly frame her vagina. Behind he could see a long, furry tail sway with her stride. His tongue was paralyzed until her body pressed against his, her arms wrapping around his neck to pull him down into a passionate kiss. Murdoch savored the sensation of her body against his, his hands tracing her curves as she pressed her crotch suggestively against his while her sandpaper tongue entwined with his own that had grown fairly extended. Her tail tickled his balls beneath the water before lightly gripping his hard cock and placing it at the entrance to her womanhood.

"Alaine," Murdoch gasped as he barely pulled back. She tried to quiet him but he persisted, "I don't want you to be—"

"I do want this," she replied before shattering his resolve with another passionate kiss. Yielding, his hands gripped her hips as her legs wrapped around him. They both moaned in the kiss as they pulled together and he entered her, shattering her cherry. For a moment the two lovers held each other and let the separation between them dissolve.

"You're... bigger than I thought," Alaine gasped.

Murdoch gasped as her impossibly tight pussy caressed him. "What... happened."

"Don't hold back," she said as she pulled back just a little before slamming back down on his cock, eliciting a moan. "Take me."

Nothing more was said between them as they began to thrust except for moans and gasps. Murdoch's vision became blurry as pleasure drowned his senses. A low rubble began to emit from Alaine's stomach and he realized it was purring before the vibration upon his cock pushed him over the edge. Thrusting as deep as possible, he exploded and drew out her orgasm as well. "Don't pull out," Alaine gasped as the wave subsided and his cock began to grow in thickness and length. Murdoch started to head toward shore as Alaine began moving upon his hard member again, moaning, "Oh god, don't stop."

The sensation of her eagerness buckled his knees and they fell upon the soft grass next to the river. Propping himself up, Murdoch began to pound his lover with full force. Beneath her lover, Alaine grew more vocal as she tried to meet his thrusts, "Oh Murdoch... fuck me! Fuck me like you've always wanted to!" Suddenly another orgasm ripped through her and a roar from her lips scattered nearby birds.

They begun a few hours before sundown and by midnight they barely slowed.

"I guess we know exactly how large I can get," laughed Murdoch as he rested his head a moment upon Alaine's breast.

"I'm so full... don't ever leave me," she moaned as she stroked his hair though her entire body felt like porridge.

"You know what I have to do to stop," Murdoch replied as he moved up to gaze into her slitted hazel eyes.

"What we both must do," said Alaine with a smile that revealed a pair of extended canines on the top and bottom of her teeth. "When I said 'take me' I meant absolutely."

Murdoch stared at her a moment before raising her up with him until he was sitting on the ground and she straddled his lap. Alaine slowly ground her pussy upon his rock hard cock as their eyes gazed into one another. Her pace grew faster and more frenzied until, she slammed down upon his cock one last time and she felt his teeth pierce her neck as her own bit him. The blood rushing into their mouths drew one final simultaneous orgasm from them that was so intense, they passed out, and spent the night entangled within each other's arms.