Chapter 46

What the hell, I thought, and began dispensing gropes with the kisses. Shortly I realized I was getting more than twelve women's worth of kisses and feeling more titties and asses than my mates had. Melieta, Jaiya, Shallea, and Shaala had joined us.

It didn't bother me a bit. As I was making sure they all got their feelings this morning I thought how much nicer mornings would be if there were ancient T-shirts. Hell T-shirts didn't weigh hardly anything. I would just have my girls all fitted for some.

They took me to get my breakfast then and handed me a big cup of coffee. They practically fed me and continued to stroke and caress me through the meal. I must have been a bigger hit last night than I'd thought.

They eased off a little when Georgo came in to eat though. He and I talked about our trip a little and soon enough we were headed to the horse cave to get Sally and Jane. I caught and harnessed them and was leaving to get Georgo's buckboard when Bigglieo came up.

"Thank the spirits the pounding is gone and I will be worth my upkeep today."

"You even did a good job yesterday during your recovery Bigglieo. I will need for you to finish the fence today though and make sure the small pickets are put on very closely to keep predators out."

"I will make sure it is done properly and if you are not back before night I will have the three young bachelors guard the fence until you can get back and put the stinging wire on."

"That is a good idea. We will probably not be back until tomorrow or maybe the day after," I said, and then Georgo and I went to get the buckboard.

My mates were there with sleeping furs for me and plenty of food for Georgo and I. Georgo fetched his furs too then. Delia came out with the M1, which I was about to forget, and five loaded magazines for it. I hadn't realized she knew exactly which cartridges it used but she had brought the right type.

Georgo and I went back into my cave then to get our coffee mugs filled before we left. When his was full he started back to the buckboard and my mates and our four unmated guest all demanded another good kissing and I added goodbye gropes for all of them.

I spent the first hour telling Georgo everything I could about handling the team as I walked them along the way. When I turned the reins over to him he did fine. Since I was familiar with this route I asked him to push Sally and Jane to a trot. He hesitated for a few seconds and then did it. I watched him closely for a couple of minutes and then he turned to me.

"This buckboard is wonderful. Even though the horses are trotting I am not bounced around like I would be if I were on their backs," Georgo said, and smiled.

"It is one of the best things about a wagon. You can let the horses trot, which is the gait they can travel farthest and fastest with and you can still ride in comfort. It is also much easier on the horses since they do not have to carry the extra weight and only have to pull it. You can cover a lot of ground rapidly while trotting the team," I explained.

Later, as we advanced to the area I hadn't been over before, the ground seemed just as good and I let Georgo maintain our pace. I quizzed him about what the traveling was going to be like and he said he couldn't remember any rough spot that might cause the horses trouble.

Georgo was correct and he was also amazed at the speed of our trip. He had been expecting to arrive late at night if we kept on and didn't stop to sleep. As it was we pulled in about an hour and a half before sunset and it was at the perfect time.

The camp seemed to just appear as we rounded a fairly sharp bend. We were nearly in its midst before I knew we were even close. There was some type of commotion and just as I realized there was a man chasing a woman through the camp Georgo spoke.

"It is him and he is chasing the woman, his mate, that I spoke of. No doubt he intends to beat her," Georgo said, in disgust.

"Stop the wagon. You are not telling me of it now, I can see it and I will not let it happen," I said, and reached for the M1 before Georgo could stop the team. He did bring them to a halt though.

The woman had tripped and the man was on her. Just as I shouldered the M1 to end his days, from a clear cloudless sky, came the biggest, fattest, and brightest bolt of lightning I had ever seen. It was as if it were thousands of bolts coming together from nothing in the sky to merge into one just above the man's head and then they surged through him.

We were no more than a hundred yards from him and the thunder was immediate and vicious. It dulled my senses and even rocked the buckboard. The man was burnt to a standing smoking mess before he could even fall. Both of his feet had exploded as the electricity left his body through them and I saw, as he was falling, both his eyes had been popped from his smoldering skull.

Everyone in the camp had been outside watching the spectacle, but none of them could have heard the puny sound his body must have made as it fell to the ground, since the thunder was still rumbling angrily. They were all stunned and motionless. Georgo turned to me with his mouth gaping open.

"The spirits have made their decision Georgo. Go and comfort your new mate," I told him, as I put the M1 back in the seat-back rack and climbed down off the buckboard.

I headed toward the people of the camp as Georgo got down and went toward Ladeliea, who lay unmoving on the ground.

The leader at least was able to gather his thoughts as I approached and he stepped toward me.

"I am John. The spirits told Georgo that he should come to this camp today to find himself a mate and we have just seen what they thought of her worthless former mate," I told him, as I showed him my palms in a gesture of friendship.

I caught movement to my right and about thirty feet away and as I turned a scroungy looking young man was coming toward me. He stopped about halfway to me.