I was tracking through the limited shade to hide from the hot sun far above us. Beating upon our shoulders with its gaze. I felt the thirst in my throat but ignored it as I pushed Bongani and I to travel as much as possible. We had days if not weeks of travel ahead of us and we had to figure out where we were going to get food and more importantly water.
We walked, the sun closing on the horizon and shining on the side of my face stretching my shadow dozens of feet to the side. That’s when I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up on end and I took a deep breath straightening up and looking around. In the tall grasses I noticed them. My heart went cold.
Several women stepped from the grasses like liquid shadows. Power and grace compacted into muscles that rippled with purpose. Their rounded ears, sharp eyes, and tails meant to balance them were taught and ready to pounce. I went to grab my club but the lead one quickly raised up their hands, “Peace laughing one.” It was a matronly and old voice that spoke. I noticed the white hairs lining the front of her hair and down the back of her neck. The thick fur spreading across her shoulders and upper chest was speckled with it.
I stilled as the sounds of others behind me met my ears. “What do you want?” I had to suppress the nervous giggle at the back of my throat. Swallowing, my heart slowed as I counted how many I was surrounded by. Three in front of me and two on the other side. Five Lionkin women. If any of them were ascended I was in far more trouble than I could measure.
The elder pointed to my shoulder and the trophy of the Lionkin I had defeated and made into my own show of power. “Looks like you slayed our last male. If my eyes don’t deceive me. The amount of white in his mane is very distinctive.”
My mouth went dry as I wondered how vindictive and violent they would be to retribute their last leader. “He came into our village, I had to defeat him, lest he destroy us.”
The younger women yawned, their enlarged canines and sharp teeth on full display. Each of them took stances of leisure and relaxation. The eldest smiled at me and nodded, “He was a hot headed young male. We did not enjoy him slaying our children when he killed our last male. If his seed wasn’t hot in the bellies of most of us we would have been happy to hear of him dying.”
I swallowed as I looked at her, “What do you mean he slew your children?”
“It is the way of male Lionkin. Killing the young ones forces us into breeding times. It lets him sire his own children quicker than waiting for us to have full grown ones around.” The others stayed back as the eldest approached me and she sniffed the air. “What are you doing so far from the villages if you helped slay him?”
I bit back the truth and raised my chin in pride, “I could no longer bow to the control of the Ade. I have to find my own way now.”
They looked at Bongani and he cowered behind me trying to hide from the gazes of all the women around us. She smiled and nodded, “I never understood your kind’s taste in males. They seem so lesser. Anyway, we need some help. Since we lost our male we need to migrate our herds north and into the lands of the lost males. Seek a new one to keep our children protected while we hunt.”
“Why hunt when you have a herd of creatures to guide and feast upon?” This was an opportunity to learn how the lions made their lives last so long. Only ascended ones lasted to old age in our village. Darela had been an outlier in all things.
“They don’t let us just cull them when we need the meal. We have to hunt and take one of them down. The beasts aren’t keen to let us walk up and slice them open.” The women around us spread out more and moved towards the rising moon.
“So, what the hell do you need me for?” I felt the tension in my shoulders ratchet up another notch.
The eldest woman tapped the side of her nose and smiled at me, “I invested in a feat that lets me smell Ascended ones. It took me many years to save up for it. I want you to accompany us, and if a male comes and isn’t ascended I want you to slay them. In return, we will travel with you and help you stay fed.”
Thoughts of the last Lionkin male I had fought filled my mind and how close it had been to killing me. I wasn’t as weak as I was then, but this would be against unascended men. I looked around, “Why wouldn’t you all just gang up on them and kill them yourself?”
“We can’t go around smelling of men’s blood. That would make us pariahs. No male would accept us if we got the mark of the betrayers. Sekhmet punishes those that do quite heavily. I think she would make an exception for a laughing one though, you follow a different god than her.” She prowled around me in a circle measuring me up. I was taller than her by a two hands, and more muscular. Though her lean build spoke of someone full of speed and grace over power.
“In return you will make sure me and my male are fed?” This would make the trip much easier, a supply of food would do well to keep my strength up. It had been many days since I had enjoyed meat of any kind.
She stopped in front of me and popped her hip out resting her hand on it, “Those of us out of breeding age can offer something else as well. Men don’t mount us, they are boring and only fuck for siring children. Rumors around the pride say your kind fuck any time they want.”
I nodded as I looked at her, the savage powerful lines of her muscles and body were enticing. The fullness of her breasts trapped in the leather that protected them from the world outside. “We do, you really only fuck to breed?”
“That’s all the males do, us ladies take care of each other though, we have needs.” Her eyes glanced at Bongani once more and her face turned down, “Your male is unpleasant. Look at him cowering and full of weakness. None of us would be willing to take care of him.”
“He needs no other woman than me. Pay him no mind.” I measured her once more and nodded to myself. There was one major risk that they would slay me in my sleep. “What happens if I turn you down?”
She grinned wickedly as the women around us stilled and stared at me with eyes that glinted in the last of the light. The day was growing dark and I could feel the bloodlust and growing promise of violence fill the air, “We haven’t eaten in two days. We wouldn’t mind a feast.”
With no choice I nodded, “I would be happy to champion you. In return for food and company. If any male you don’t approve of comes for you I will slay them and add them to my trophies.”
The woman nodded, her tail swishing out behind her in a lazy approval of my decision. “Then welcome to the pride laughing one. I am Gugulethu, matron and the one that you will deal with most.”
She moved and I took in the gaze of her full ass. It jiggled nicely with every step and I found myself following her into the darkness of the night. Bongani’s hand tentatively gripped mine and I looked at him with confusion. “W-w-wise Aphelele. B-b-better to h-help others.”
Shoving him forward I kicked him in the ass hard making him yelp and cry in pain. With a snatching motion I had his ear in my hand and squeezed it hard. He whimpered, “Keep your fucking mouth shut male! I still haven’t forgiven you for fucking that whore Oda.”
“Y-you,” He started to protest and I twisted my hand making him get on his tip toes and hiss in pain.
“Silence,” I hissed. “You’re going to know your place again. That woman spoiled you and you think you can talk out of turn now. If you knew better you would have refused that woman and fought against the breeding madness. Don’t ever betray me again or I’ll rip your balls off and feed them to you.”
He nodded quickly as I hauled him by his ear and continued to walk forward half dragging him by the ear. Whimpering he was half bent over hand on my wrists to keep me from ripping his ear off as he stared at the ground. I could smell his arousal fill the air and smiled to myself. Like a good male he knew where he should be now. At my feet and surrendering himself to me and my whims.
Gugulethu looked back at me with a frown, she spat on the ground, “Such a weak male. With you around we won’t accept some lionkin that isn’t the peak of man.” Her tail swished lightly as she walked. The woman had spread out far from us and they paused at trees pulling out long poles and the smell of beasts filled my nose.
A herd of gazelle stretched out before us, the musk of them potent in the air as I spotted another dozen women surrounding them slowly. Working as one they prodded and threatened the beasts to start moving through the night. Slowly and with care the entire herd and pride started traveling north.
Feeling trepidation but a place I could belong as a symbol of power I walked forward. My hand kept Bongani staring at the ground like he should as I guided him. When we stopped I would sate my growing lust as I felt more like myself. I looked at the lionkin women around me and wondered what their pussies were going to feel like.
