The Acrobats

If Kharsoom was known for one thing in the waning years of the Fifth Strata it was for the Silken Labyrinth. For good reason, mind. Though it was famous, or perhaps infamous, throughout the world, its relatively isolated location made travel to it difficult. Many made the trek, lured by the honeyed delights promised between the legs of the finest courtesans in all the world. Many more would claim to have visited than ever had, and right up until the end of the Fifth Strata and beginning of the Sixth, bedslaves trained in the Labyrinth fetched extravagant prices.

It was inevitable that I would eventually visit the Labyrinth. By now, my weakness for carnal experience is well-documented and I would not stay away from the most famous brothel in the world forever. I had already lain with a Labyrinth-trained woman, and I thought often of the glories of her mouth. It had long been in the back of my mind to find a time to visit. As it happened, when the opportunity arose, it was entirely by luck.

I had gone to the north of Kharsoom and paralleled the craggy mountain range that held back the great glaciers. By chance, I happened upon a lord's caravan under attack by a raiding party of xerxyss. By that time I had been without company for several months, and my circumspection was not what it normally was. I threw myself into the fray on the side of the defenders, swiftly turning the tide, sending the xerxyss and their hunting beasts scurrying back to the highlands.

"Noble boldisar," said the lord, approaching me with his bodyguards behind him. He was young and vital, and though short, he was well-muscled and had fought alongside his men. "I thank you for your aid. What may I call you?"

"I am Ashuz," I said.

"The Farmer," one of his men murmured. The others whispered to one another, their eyes finding my spear, Ur-Anu. The weapon was distinctive, its obsidian blade bright with veins like lightning.

"Well met, Ashuz. I am Lord Eakassir of Clan Keldet. Bravery such as yours will not go unrewarded. You will have silver and provisions of course."

"You are too kind."

"I regret that I am traveling without a bedslave, but that is the purpose of our journey. I propose a unique reward. We are going to the Silken Labyrinth, and you will be my guest. Will you accept?"

I took his hand. "Gratefully."

He beamed. "Ashuz joins the caravan, lads!"

Warriors shot me salutes, and when I finally dismounted Ksenaëe to bed down for the night, they all wished to introduce themselves. They had heard stories, and I suppose what I had done against the xerxyss gave such tales weight.

"Are you truly Ashuz the Farmer?" they asked.

"If I say yes, will you give me to Clan Sesamhat?"

To a man they shook their heads. "You fought with us. Clan Keldet respects its friends."

Kharsoom was a land of elaborate rules and dizzying customs, but it was always strange to encounter those who actually followed them when no one was looking. In my brief association with Lord Eakassir, I judged him to be as noble a man as Kharsoom could produce. Although I admit my opinion might be burnished by the delicious night I spent in the Labyrinth.

I ate their food and drank their wine and slept by their fire. They were tolerable traveling companions, and after my solitude even a little idle chatter did me good. A few days later the city came into view on the horizon.

The Silken Labyrinth lay at the center of the city of Baiydira. In the distant past, the Kharsoomians had sculpted their lands using techniques long forgotten. I believe once this had been a section of low mountains they had turned into a collection of easily-defensible mesas and plateaus. In the millennia since, the peaks had further crumbled in the face of the hungry winds that swept down from the peaks to the north. Now the city perched precariously atop a bizarre array of rock formations, crisscrossed with bridges of rope and wood. It looked to be ready to collapse into the cracked earth at any moment, and yet it persisted. In that way it was an admirable model for Kharsoom as a whole.

A decadent tyrant called Prince Gehmahl ruled the city from a modest castle clinging to a spire of land barely big enough to support it. His castle looked vestigial, and in many ways far too rude for so important a city. Yet the modesty of the castle betrayed its lack of import. The Silken Labyrinth was the beating heard of Baiydira, and its blood the slaves who toiled in honeyed bliss within.

Lord Eakassir's caravan wound up the series of tiers, spires, and across swaying bridges to the city center. The Labyrinth had originally been the city's slave market, but had since been built up and out, and now made of itself a more impressive castle than the Prince's own home. More guards stood on the ramparts around the Labyrinth than the city, and they were far more impressive specimens. I could not speak for their fighting abilities, but I suspected that if trouble ever came to Baiydira it would find itself at the one place everyone did. The Labyrinth.

We arrived at the gates of the Silken Labyrinth near sunset. Its collection of towers and turrets stood out against the western sky. Torches blazed from sconces, and a scent of spice and musk lingered on the wind, a delicious promise of what lay within.

A full entourage in silks greeted Lord Eakassir. The lead was a fat eunuch, his skin paler than mine, a single braided scalplock growing from his head to his expansive waist. Around him were muscled guards, men and women, their armor adorned with rich silks.

The eunuch spotted the banners of Clan Keldet, his sigil of three spears buried in the earth on a field of orange. "Welcome Clan Keldet to the Silken Labyrinth," he purred.

Lord Eakassir gave the eunuch a pouch heavy with caira, and made arrangements for himself, four of his bodyguards, and me, his wandering boldisar. He then expressed interest in purchasing one of the slaves within.

The eunuch handed the pouch back to one of the guards. "All will be made available to you, noble lord. Come with me, and we will begin your evening with a fine meal. Love should never be attempted on an empty stomach."

Eakassir bade the caravan to go into town, and was certain to pay his men a little extra. They would be visiting one of Baiydira's less famous brothels, and I have been told that even one of these is superior to the best bawdy house in any other city on Thür. I gave Ksenaëe over to the lord's grooms, who assured me they would take good care of her. She squawked, but no protest from my noble steed would keep me from the Labyrinth. I was eager as a child, my body bright like lightning.

The eunuch led us into the Labyrinth's central keep, a low building connected to the rest of the complex via the maze of chambers and corridors that gave the place its sobriquet. The first room was a feasting hall, but even this was divided up into a maze of sorts by silks hanging from the ceiling. The air was permeated with the spicy scents of Kharsoomian cooking, and the sounds of dining could be heard throughout. The eunuch brought us to a table sized for us, and comely slaves brought out trays of steaming food while a pair, a man and a woman, danced in a mime of loveplay on a platform at the center of our table. The music was divine, ethereal and complex, stemming from a quartet of practiced musicians in one corner.

I selected a dried fig and tasted, finding it smoked and spiced. It was delicious.

"Why the expression, my friend?" asked Eakassir.

"The food is good. Very good."

"When you leave the Labyrinth, it will be with no sense left unfulfilled."

I ate my fill of stewed cactus, spiced ripper flank, roast jagkru, honeyed qobad tongues, pharchyl sweetbreads, and stuffed urok stomach. I drank a single goblet of akaberry wine, but I could never abide its overly sour taste. I was stunned when a slave appeared serving chocolatl. I guzzled it, much to the amusement of my companions, who thought of it as a drink for children and soft nobles, not brave boldisars. The irony was that it was terrible chocolatl, I know now because the beans had grown too dry during transit, but I didn't care. Even this shadow of a taste was enough to bring me back to my blissful time in Pelesamatu, when I very nearly settled into a simple life.

"You do not like our wine, Ashuz?" Eakassir teased.

"No," I said, drinking my third mug of chocolatl. "I've tasted other kinds of wine."

The lord laughed, and his men hammered the table in approval of my cheek. We finished our meal, and the eunuch appeared to guide us from our table to the gateway into the Labyrinth itself.

The threshold was draped with silks, layers of folds suggestively drawing us into the maze of our lusts.

"Honored guests," said the eunuch, "it is time for your journey into the Silken Labyrinth. No two journeys are ever precisely the same. You may go one by one or in groups as you prefer, and you may sample rooms alone or together. If you find a doorway barred by silk, you may not enter. All others are open to your indulgence. I beg you, indulge yourselves my lords. Leave no sensation unexperienced. You are in the fabled Silken Labyrinth!"

Eakassir turned to us. "I am proud to offer this night to you. I will go first, alone, and I will meet you tomorrow a happier man."

He disappeared through the threshold. The rest of us filtered in. First one man went, then a pair went together. Then the last man remaining clapped my arm. "Go, my friend."

I went through the perfumed silks. I found the Labyrinth was not lightly named. It was a maze, lit by regularly spaced burning braziers, filling the air with perfumed smoke. The cloying musk called the nectar of both men and women to mind. Portals were hung with silks, and some of those were closed, the sounds of love emanating from within. Guards, men and women, were spaced about, staring straight ahead, as though we weren't there at all.

I paused at the first open door. I found a long table, nobles sitting on either side. They did not eat from plates. Instead, slaves lay upon the surface, food over their sexes, in some cases smeared over their skins. The nobles ate with relish.

I moved on. The next room I found was a writhing mass of bodies. It reminded me of the cult before. Half wore collars, half didn't. From time to time one would look up, see me lingering in the doorway and beckoning. I thought this must happen in this room every night, as more and more visitors joined the pile, finding bliss with one another or the slaves of the Labyrinth.

I kept going. I saw all manner of decadence, and loveplay in every combination. In some rooms, the entertainments of the night had not yet begun, and those within were waiting for a visitor to select them. I found rooms with only a single man or women, others with two, three, or even more. Some with an array of objects, some with implements of torture or restraint, others with food or animals. The slaved here came in every variety, and though most were Kharsoomian, there were others too. Elves, dwarves, orcs, and ghouls. I even saw a cyclops, and I briefly considered trying her.

Of the ones waiting, some merely lounged. Others had started a pantomime of loveplay. Others had started the act itself, though not with the ardor one would require to find bliss. Whenever I darkened such a doorway, they would pause their games and beckon to me. I continued, not knowing precisely what I wanted that night but knowing that when I found it I would know.

I arrived at a room, peering inside. Like the others, it was lit with a fragrant brazier filling the air with the lovely spiced scent. Mirrors directed the light to the center of the room so that all around was deep and sticky shadows. In this circle of light two remarkable women performed.

Both Kharsoomian, they each wore only a golden slave collar and golden bands about their ankles. They were both short, both more than a full head shorter than I, their breasts small. One was a little taller, a little more slender, and her skin a bit more scarlet. The other had broader shoulders and thicker hips and thighs, her skin a darker crimson. Both of them were balls of muscle, every movement of their bodies showing some of the most impressive physiques I had ever seen. They were lean and powerful, every part of them picked out in exquisite detail. On a hairless Kharsoomian physique, such a sight was ecstasy to behold.

Their faces were bright and beautiful. Their bodies glistened with oil that smelled of spicy flowers. Their blue-black hair was short, slicked to their heads with more oil.

I watched, mesmerized, as they linked hands, and the thinner of the two leveraged herself up with little more than incredible muscle power. She straightened her body, balancing upside-down on the raised palm of the other one. They quivered only slightly, their thews coiling beneath their shining red flesh. I felt myself stirring, as these two alluring, powerful nymphs called to me with the power, grace, and beauty of their bodies.

I made my decision, stepping inside, and on impulse I closed the curtain. The thinner one hopped from her perch to stand next to her partner. They stepped just beyond the ring of light to join me in shadow.

"Do you know what the closed curtain means?" asked the thinner.

"It means I've chosen you."

"We are yours to do with as you please," said the shorter.

"What are the rules?" I asked.

"If you break them, we will tell you," said the thinner.

"If you keep breaking them, we will call the guards. But we have never needed the guards before," said the shorter.

"She killed a man with her thighs."

"I understand," I said.

"Good," said the thinner.

"What are your names?"

"I am Ra-Nom," said the shorter.

"I am Halitet," said the thinner.

"I am Ashuz. How do we begin?" I asked.

"Any way you like," said Ra-Nom.

"If you wish," said Halitet, "we will give you a show first."

"I wish it," I said.

Ra-Nom and Halitet took my hands, one on either side. The heat of their bodies enfolded me. In the shadow, the light caught them in gleaming smears. They led me to the darkest part of the room, where I found a couch covered in furs. I sat, and the two of them kissed my cheeks. Their breath was as perfumed as the air, as though the smoke had made a home inside them and now seeped from their pores.

"Do you want wine, Ashuz?" asked Ra-Nom.

"No."

"Water then?" asked Halitet.

I nodded, and Halitet selected a jug from the table and poured it into a goblet.

"Enjoy yourself," Ra-Nom said, "and if you find can wait no longer, call to us."

The two of them held hands, turning about and walking back to the circle of light, swinging their hips. Watching the dimples in their muscular buttocks, I knew then that I would take one Arthan style. The image of their magnificent bodies writhing beneath me was almost too much to bear, and I nearly called to them. I settled back, reminding myself that I would make this a long night to remember.

I produced my sweetwater goblet, pouring the water from their cup to mine. The enchanted liquid instantly put strength into my limbs and banished thirst. I reclined on the couch among the perfumed furs, while the two of them began their show.

They began simply, but even these simple actions showed them to be remarkable pieces of living art. Posing, they displayed their sculpted bodies, firelight dancing over their oiled flesh. Then, Halitet turned over, getting onto her hands, walking easily, then rolling back to her feet in a single fluid motion.

Ra-Nom followed with a cartwheel, a roll, back to a cartwheel. Halitet responded with tumbling of her own. Each successive demonstration showed more of their stunning grace and power. They made every movement look easy, even as their muscles bunched and coiled. These were bodies turned into machines of beauty.

My gaze crawled over them, from their tiny breasts and hard nipples, to the cross-hatching of muscles across their abdomens down to the slits between their legs. I did not know if they shined with oil or their own juices, but they called to me.

I removed my boots, setting them aside. After a moment, I doffed my loincloth and sheath as well, placing them with Ur-Anu and returning to the furs to recline as a Kharsoomian. Though I was turgid, ready for one of these nymphs, I did not touch myself. I let the erotic glory of their performance wash over me. The light of the fires, the soft, fragrant smoke, the tiny grunts the two of them uttered as they executed a particularly difficult move all combined to intoxicate me like the strongest wine. My want grew to need. I had seen them, heard them, smelled them. I had to touch and taste.

Halitet launched Ra-Nom into the air, where she snatched at a ring of silks hanging around the lighted circle. As she caught it, the silk unraveled, revealing now a single drape, as wide as one of their arms, hanging almost to the floor.

As it fell, Ra-Nom turned over, clinging to the silk with her legs as it wrapped fetchingly about her. She swung to her partner, catching her by the wrists and launching her. Halitet too grabbed a swatch of silk, and now two of these narrow curtains hung from opposite sides of the circle. One more complex move later and two more fell, forming corners for the circle of light.

The two nude acrobats then moved from these with the same astonishing grace and power, sometimes using one another, sometimes leaping, sometimes swinging. The silk clung to them like a lover, and there were times it seemed just as alive as they were. As they moved, the silks hid pieces of them, maddening me, for I wanted to see all of them, every last bit, constantly. They were far too perfect to be hidden, these delicious aerialists.

When I was maddened, and I could bear no more, Halitet, hanging upside down said, "Come to us, brave boldisar."

Ra-Nom hung right side up, her legs spread. "We will show you delights undreamt of."

I approached, straining and turgid, my mind no longer my own, my senses beguiled by their fetching beauty. I walked into the midst of the circle of light, the motion of the two nymphs and the swaying silks washing the sweet-smelling smoke into me. I felt as though I was stepping into a dream, the red limbs of the two acrobats twining through the silks. They spun, closer, and I caught their scent, the musk of sex, the spice of oil. Need sunk its claws into me. I had to have them, had to feel the power of their bodies from inside.

I reached out for Ra-Nom, and Halitet was on me, her legs wrapping about my trunk, her lips brushing over my cheek. I turned, ready to impale her upon my length. She leaned back, letting me go as she sprang away on her palms. I caught a flash of her drooling slit. I nearly pursued, but Ra-Nom was on my back. I felt her heat at the small of my back, her hard nipples brushing between my shoulderblades.

"You want her?"

"Yes."

"Lay down and you shall have us both," said Halitet, lifting herself into the silks.

I growled, turning, but Ra-Nom leapt from me, into the silks. I was torn between the two of them, knowing that a lunge for one would be answered by the other. Halitet's command echoed in my mind. I wanted them because I had never experienced their like. The order would be for this, an exquisite pleasure I could not deny.

I relented, laying down in the middle of the light. I was treated to a new perspective of their aerial dance. They writhed above me, and occasionally a musky droplet fell to kiss my flesh. I did not know if it was sweat, nectar, or oil, and in truth it was likely all three of them, merged into a delicious ambrosia. When next it fell, I caught it on my tongue, and shuddered, a bolt of pure pleasure shooting through my body.

The dance reached a delirious height as the two of them spun together. Their powerful legs linked above me. I was in awe of the skill, and the raw power of their muscles to manage this maneuver. Their thighs pulled them together, and somehow they were performing the blessed crossroads in midair, their hips rolling as their orchids were made to kiss one another. They descended, whirling over me in a tightening spiral. My staff strained for them, but they were united, I could not find where I would enter. Drops of that liquid, the oily ambrosia fell on me like rain. Then, as I felt the fragrant wash of the wind over me, they parted just enough, and I was between them.