Spear of Destiny by James Baldwin (little bear else holmelund minarik .TXT) 📕

Both ears flattened to his skull in dismay when he saw. “Oy! Khun kalang kan, Payu?”

Payu reared his head up at Taethawn’s call, his nostrils flexing, but his fierce golden gaze was irresistibly drawn back to Cutthroat. I knew that look. It was the face of a man on a mission.

“Payu!” Taethawn let out a clicking whistle, but Payu insolently lifted his crests, flicked his tail, and set after Cutthroat at a determined trot.

“Ohoi, my Payu has finally found a lady worthy of his attentions.” Taethawn let out a short laugh, shaking his head. “Don’t worry, Your Grace. Cutthroat will sort him out.”

Vash made a religious sign in front of his forehead. “Should Payu perish in his pursuit of glory, I will be here to give him rites.”

I watched with increasing apprehension as Payu closed the distance to Cutthroat. He let out a huffing bark, and she reared up from her territorial marking, twisting her neck to glare at him.

“HOHH! HOHH!” Payu was large, as hookwings went, but he was no Cutthroat. The bull seemed oblivious to this difference in mass as he inflated his throat, fanned the feathers of his hook arms, and began to bounce his head from side to side. “HOHH!”

I groaned, smearing my hand over my face. “Oh no. Nooo, dude. It’s so not worth it.”

“What?” Suri squinted up at me, then followed my line of sight. “Oh Jesus. Taethawn, grab your bloody bird before Cutthroat rips his dick off and eats it, will ya?”

Taethawn made an airy gesture with one hand. “She is too big for him. He will learn.”

Cutthroat turned her nose up and carried on her rounds, ignoring the male who was now pitter-pattering along behind her, dragging his tail like a randy pigeon. He weaved from one side of her to the other in the hope that she would glimpse his magnificent manly plumage and succumb to his charms.

“Payu! Forget it, mate!” Suri cupped her hand to her mouth, raising her voice to be heard over Sandstorm’s cooing. “That old battleaxe has a cunt drier than the Bashir. You aren’t crackin’ that nut.”

“You mean, he isn’t nutting in that crack,” Vash said drily.

Suri burst out with a short snortled laugh. The noise was so sudden that Rin reflexively shot up to her feet so fast and that the top of her head struck Suri right under the shelf formed by her breastplate. She rebounded with a squeal and tripped, falling onto her butt.

“Ahhhh!” Rin clutched her head. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to!”

Suri was too busy losing her shit to respond, other than to reel away and slap her knees.

“It’s fine,” I cheerfully called down to her. “Suri’s tits are an occupational hazard. I bounce off them all the time.”

“Uaaaaah! HECTOR!!” Rin covered her face with her hands.

The mirth was interrupted by a snarl, a thump, and a saurian shriek of pain. Everyone turned back to the hookwings to see Cutthroat bowl Payu off his feet, yelping as the huge female’s jaws briefly closed on his neck. He backed up with his head low to the ground, hissing, as Cutthroat reared up and clashed her hooked claws together, the universal hookwing sign language for ‘take your stupid mating dance and go fuck yourself with it’.

“Poor Payu,” Taethawn sighed. “But we cannot say he did not try.”

“He was doomed from the start.” I swung my legs, bumping my heels against the thick leather saddle. “Cutthroat’s convinced that Suri, and only Suri, will be the mother of her children.”

Taethawn laughed. “It isss known that some ghora become rider-bonded. It is a lucky thing to have happen for a warrior, and good for battle. But such ghora often cannot be bred for reasons that should be obviousss.”

Rin, still blushing furiously, clambered back to her feet. “Okay, guys, the harness looks good. Everything should just... work. Get ready to have Karalti catch her if the chute doesn’t deploy properly. This IS a prototype.”

Suri swallowed, looking up at the clouds. “It sure is.”

“No sweat. Suri knows what to do once she’s up there.” I dropped the visor of my helmet and locked it into place. “You ready, Karalti?”

“Yeah!”  Karalti bent down, resting her ribcage on the ground, and stretched her wing for Suri to climb. “I finally get to achieve my childhood dream of throwing Suri off something really high!”

I rolled my eyes and smacked the side of Karalti’s neck as she mimicked Rin’s giggling laughter.

“I really cannot wait to see thisss.” Taethawn shook his head, extending a single claw to pick at his teeth. “Even I think it is crazy. How will you direct your landing?”

“The parachute has toggles,” Rin said. “You can change your direction with them.”

“I bet you real money I can land it in that square first shot.” Suri cocked her chin at him, reaching up to grasp my hand as she clambered up to the saddle. When she was on, I took the front position and she took the back.

The Meewfolk grinned broadly. “Hmmmm… let us ssssay… fifty olbia?”

“Fuck that. Bet a hundred or go home.” Suri bared her teeth at him.

“Tam tai miu’in. The deal is made.” Taethawn put his hands together, palm to palm, and bowed over them. “One hundred olbia that you can land in the square.”

Suri gave him a thumbs up, then went to hands and knees. She gripped the handles at the back of the saddle, facing toward Karalti’s tail.

“Okay. Be warned that you’re going to feel like you’re about to fall off constantly,” I said, getting into position between my dragon’s shoulders. “Turbulence feels worse on the hiney of the dragon. It’s not worse, but it feels like it.”

“The hiney of the dragon,” Karalti repeated somberly. “The dragon’s hiney.”

Suri grunted. “Yeah. Okay. I’m more worried about a tail strike.”

It