The Expedition: Chapter Nine

The warrior pilgrims spent the day preparing to die. Even Amelia's love and bride-to-be Fayla spent the day sharpening her swords and readying herself for war. The taller woman, the one who kissed Amelia the night before, handed her a spear - a weapon she did not know how to use, but if the tribe was heading into battle, everyone needed to defend themselves.

Amelia watched the elders of the tribe discuss plans among themselves, planning a move later in the day, giving everyone a chance to rest, and nearing the temple under cover of darkness. They discussed having the tribes travel at night so they could make their way through the near the attackers with less difficulty, avoiding any tribal enemies on their route towards the Temple of Kayala.

The death cult was still out there, somewhere, looking for her. She could feel it as though it were following her. She looked over at Fayla and nodded, smiling weakly as she held her new wife's hand and kissed her cheek.

Fayla smiled at her. "We protect our Goddess. Our way of life. The treasures in that temple are the faith of my kind. Why would anyone steal them?"

Amelia hugged her tight. "Greed makes people do heartless and stupid things. If I have to die to stop greed and injustice, I accept that."

Amelia closed her eyes, even if it was by my father's hand.

The tribe bedded down in their white billowing tents during the day, forcing themselves to rest so they would be ready for a battle at night or early the following day. Amelia watched the female warriors of the tribe as they hugged and kissed their male and female mates, and she felt the heartbreak.

She wandered back to the bathing spot near the temple ruins and stared into the water's mirror-like surface. The few clouds that drifted by overhead lazily moved across the pool's surface as if they floated on glass. She sat on the stone she slept upon, alone for a moment as she gathered her thoughts.

Could she fight?

Would she kill the people she sailed here with?

Could she kill her father?

She hugged herself, now dressed as one of the beautiful warrior women, in her white flowing robes and barely-covering mail bikini. She let out a long sigh and stared at the sandals tied around her feet, wiggling her toes.

A small piece of green desert glass, blown dull by thousands of years of sand, gleamed in the light. She picked it up and admired the small fragment; feeling smooth in her fingers, she polished it to give it a dull, jade-like sheen.

Polished...?

She reached into her robes, opened a pouch, and retrieved the lamp.

She polished the lamp.

Pink smoke began emanating from the lamp, and she smiled. The cloud dispersed, and Shayanna the Genie stood in front of her!

Amelia leaped up and hugged Shayanna, burying her face between the genie's enormous breasts and nuzzling them before realizing she was acting too sexual with her new genie friend.

Genie's eyes went wide as she stared down at Amelia. "Oh my! I did not realize you were so attracted to me, Amelia! And you are playing dress up in this quite romantic spot! I know what you wish to do!"

Genie pulled the pink silk off a breast and pushed Amelia's mouth against her nipple. "Oh! My eager love! Suckle my breast like a lover, and we shall make love like only two women do!"

Amelia blinked with Genie's nipple in her mouth, wondering if she should continue and say nothing about a war happening. She closed her eyes and removed her lips from the delicious, lavender-scented skin with a pop, leaving a wet mark.

Amelia felt wrong about resisting her advances, but business was business. "Genie! While I appreciate the offer, there is something much direr happening!"

Shayanna leaned back and sighed dramatically, looking hurt by her rejection of their relationship. "What could be worse than that? This place is dead, empty - no men." Her eyes twinkled mischievously as she licked her finger and ran it along her bottom lip, wiggling it seductively. "Unless... we had a male here to play with! Oh! No matter what type of male it is, they all have one wonderful, delicious thing in common." The genie stepped close to Amelia and whispered in her ear: "They want us to take our clothes off for them! You would be surprised how many females forget this simple fact!"

"No," Amelia said flatly, standing up. "Not that!"

Genie blinked and blushed. "They like licking us? Especially our female parts? You know I can train them to do that!"

Amelia looked at Shayanna sternly. "I am not interested in your training techniques of the male species, Genie!"

Genie frowned. "Then you want to know how to please them with your mouth?"

Amelia rubbed her eyes. "Genie, Shayanna, my friend. Look at me! I am going to war tomorrow! Against my father!"

The two stared with mouths agape before nodding their heads together. "Ohhh! I see! A warrior's woman does need a few skills beyond her own weaponry! But we will talk about that later. Right now, let's get you ready for a battle."

Shayanna sat down on a nearby stone bench and pulled a cloth from under her robe. She wiped Amelia's face clean and then applied makeup across her cheeks, forehead, and lips. Amelia winced at Genie's cluelessness.

"Genie," Amelia said, "do you know this tribe of warriors I am with? The Mal'a'kai?"

Genie shook her head no while applying lipstick to Amelia's full lips. "I've heard of them - but they don't really exist in real life! Only in the future time. Oh! Are we in that future time now? That isn't good."

Amelia smiled to herself, amused by Genie's ignorance.

"Are they an army that protects Kayala and fights evil outsiders?" Shayanna asked.

"Yes."

"Are you fighting your father for what he has done?" Shayanna inquired with curiosity.

"Yes. Well, for what he will do if he is not stopped."

"Is it like in the stories of the Death Cult? Are you going to fight your father to the death for a holy relic or something?"

"No, it is nothing like the story of the cult. I am going to kill him because of greed."

Genie blinked her eyes at Amelia with shock. "You're not being dramatic about this, are you? I know you better than that!"

Amelia wanted to laugh, but she was serious. "My father is about to do something terrible to this tribe and hurt their culture and religion! I just can't let that happen!"

Shayanna raised a brow as she applied eyeliner and mascara to Amelia's face. Genie pulled out some dark blue paint and used it on Amelia's fingernails to match her robe's trim. She dabbed a bit on her cheekbone before brushing Amelia's long hair into one large ponytail, which hung over her shoulder on the right side of her neck. She brushed her hands together, examining Amelia's makeup work up close, looking satisfied, and stood in front of Amelia, admiring herself in the pool of light.

"You look lovely, my love," Shayanna said in admiration.

"Thanks," Amelia replied flatly with a hint of sarcasm. "Good to know I look nice on the day I kill my father, or he kills me."

"Oh no! It won't come to that - unless you force his hand! I will protect you from harm if you only tell us your plan! We could stop him!" The genie paused for effect as if trying to say something without actually saying it.

Amelia sighed. "Do you have magic that could help us, Genie?"

Genie smiled at her, playfully pulling her breast back in her pink silk bikini. "You should know how a magic lamp works, Amelia. When you figure that out, then I may help you. Until then, I want to get my hands on you and that sexy young wife of yours, my love." She leaned forward and kissed Amelia on the mouth before stepping away and disappearing into a cloud of pink smoke.

Amelia watched the smoke dissipate. "Genie, you left me even more confused and helpless than before I called you. And what makes it worse is I am incredibly aroused for you as well."

Fayla's voice came from behind her. "She is pretty, your genie."

Amelia smiled. "I needed to speak with her. And she wants to sleep with the two of us if that is okay with you."

"I would love that!" Fayla nodded. "And I want to see how she trains males!"

Amelia groaned. "Why is everyone so horny?"

Fayla kissed her on the cheek. "When we are close to death, we think about life. Starting it anew. Making sure the life we lived carries on." She walked by her side, and they walked back toward their tent. "I look forward to spending our lives together in every way possible, Amelia." She winked as if there were nothing wrong in their relationship at all.

Amelia had a sense that something was very, very wrong.

When the sun fell, the Mal'a'kai tribe prepared to battle a force of men who planned to rob their lands blind.

And Amelia stood alongside her battle sisters, watching that orange ball of fire slip below the horizon.

When the next sun rose, she would be at war.