A Big Shiny Blue Marble Ch. 48

***Some people have strange jobs. Others have strange hobbies. Some people manage to combine the two, and Jonas Bull is one of those.

0_o

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Book of the Forsaken Part 3

With the dawn, the many travelers began to stir -- some needing to get limbs disentangled a little first. But they all managed it eventually and after a bit of milling about, Rosa and the others who were leaders here somehow began to get them all marshaled and off they went. The natural tendency here was to walk in numbers across the flatter parts and to work out a single file progression through the hills, but Raul put a stop to that.

"We need to stand and walk together," he said, "If we're attacked for some reason while we're all strung out in a line, it's just bad planning and we'll lose good people for nothing."

He looked up at the demons wheeling above them, "I know we got some protection, but I want us to walk a little wider than single file -- unless we get to someplace where we've gotta do that."

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Randi sat in the bed looking down at Rudhi and holding her hand loosely. What had begun with a lot of hope and promise for them didn't materialize beyond some kisses and quiet petting. Neither one was upset -- they were just a little sad and they were better friends than ever from it all.

Randi found that no matter how she wanted this for them, she always came up against something in herself that stopped her. While she tried very hard to get past it, Rudhi had her own troubles. Where she was from, lovemaking was mostly very similar to the ways that it is done here. There are soft and quiet times -- and those were the ones where Randi found that she stood the best chance to begin -- and there were more urgent times. That was fine.

But on the world where Rudhi had come from, 'urgent' was an open doorway to 'aggressive', and though she tried her best, not wishing to hurt her friend or put her off any farther, it still oftentimes came up in her and that stopped things cold every time.

In a very real lover's sense, the two were forced to agree to disagree -- though they now knew that they did love each other, even needing to be close and touching often. They just couldn't find enough common ground to make love with each other.

After breakfast, they walked back to the forge to begin the work of finishing Randi's blades.

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When it got to be a little past noon, there was a quiet and barely discernible shift in the activities of the seedier part of the town. The church had emptied out and the God-fearing people had gone home. But there were many who came back for an entirely different attraction.

Down at the largest bar in the town, business was steady all week -- until about Friday night when it began to get a little brisk. That commerce picked up even more on Saturday afternoon and evening, and then it began to taper off once more, Sunday afternoons being the end of the activity cycle after one last event.

Besides the booze, the bar had entertainment as many did. Out here, that meant strippers most nights, but toward the end of the week right on up to the Sunday matinee, there was a very different sort of entertainment offered there.

On this particular Sunday afternoon, the house was packed as it had been for every single show. It was busy every weekend, but once a month, one had better get there early or give it up entirely.

The place was jammed early and the crude coal oil lighting kept most of the audience in almost darkness as the footlights lit the center of the large room. Waiters moved through the crowd because for these events, the waitresses just couldn't handle things. Most nights for these convocations, the crowd was almost entirely male, but for the Sunday matinee, that's when almost half of those present were females -- the very same ones who'd sniff with an air of obvious distaste if the subject of the matinees came up in civil conversation.

Like almost everyone else, they were there for the wicked thrill of this and the more sensitive members of the townsfolk looked the other way. Numerous attempts had been made to shut this down, but thus far, nothing could stop these cage fights.

The crowd hushed a little expectantly as the portly M.C. strutted into the open area in front of the structure and after his usual braying attempts to stir the blood of those present, the first matches got underway. People watched politely as the fighters tore into each other and though there was the occasional injury, it was only the current equivalent of any of the more serious forms of entertainment fighting, still alive after all of the time which had passed.

People were pummeled -- some were knocked cold, and a few left the ring bloodied. The spectators were getting their money's worth. But underneath it all, they all waited for the main event.

An intermission was declared and a group of six men entered the cage after the last preliminary bout and got to work quickly. They were there to clean up any slippery spots and they were done in a few minutes as everyone tried to order another mug of ale for themselves and maybe a bowl of nachos to go with it. But at length, the M.C. was back and as he droned on the crowd watched as three rectangular boxes covered in dark cloths were wheeled up against gates which were built into the cage wall.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, "the master of ceremonies boomed though the handheld megaphone in his deep voice, "This is the main event about to begin. We have taken all reasonable precautions, but we strongly recommend that you all remain in your seats, and above all, do not come near to the cage once this match is underway."

As he went on, the doors of the rolling squares were lined up with openings in the cage and left open, so that whatever was in the rolling cells could come into the cage. The audience peered, trying to see into the smaller cages, but there was only darkness there.

"This is not anything to be witnessed by the faint of heart," the M.C. shouted out above the noise of the crowd, "On average, we lose about one person a week here, but there are always some who seem to think that this is a staged event, and so we always offer the chance to compete to anyone -- so long as they are of age and have signed the necessary waivers.

Oh, and paid the entrance fee, of course," he grinned, "For the mere pittance of only one gold, you too can try your luck at and have a chance to win the purse, which at present, stands at over seven thousand golds.

Yessir," he shouted, "You can try your luck at defeating ... the mighty mountain queen herself, ... the one and only, ... mmmMMUNGRA, queen of the mountain goblin hordes and her two handmaidens!"

The crowd roared as he shouted louder, trying to be heard over it, "Yes! What you've heard is true! Mungra and her girls are the last of a ferocious tribe of goblins, found in a cavern high up in the mountains of Idaho by our own expedition."

Mindful of the make-up of the population in front of him, he dipped his voice just a little, "They were known to be the ones responsible for the disappearances of many young women from the communities there, reputed to come in the night to steal away an unsuspecting farmer's daughter now and then, bringing them back to their cavern to perform unSPEAK-able acts upon them against their will.

When they were found, the goblins here were living with a few of the surviving captives in squalor and those girls are now living in institutions, the effects of the depravity to which they were subjected leaving lasting scars on their poor minds."

The crowd roared again, but the sound from one of the smaller cages silenced them. The sound which came forth was a little deafening in that it hurt the ear. The audience fell silent and then the beasts bounded out into the large cage, one from each of the smaller ones.

The crowd went wild as they watched the three large and very naked females come to a stop and look around at the audience. They were all a dark and dull grayish green as they stood growling low in their throats. Someone threw a mug at the cage, but they saw it coming and turned their heads. The heavy ceramic mug smashed against the bars, and the goblins were there in an instant, roaring and trying to see who it had been as several beefy bouncers wrestled with the thrower to get him out.

Anyone who had never witnessed these events would have stared at the three of them, but it was easy to tell which of them was Mungra. She looked out at the audience with disdain, and unlike the two others, she wore a necklace which was adorned with bones.

And it didn't take much of an imagination to see that they were the linked and wired-together bones of a very human-looking hand.

Mungra could speak, it turned out, though not well and she reached out through the bars pointing here and there, howling out her challenge, "You! Fight me. Come here! Come here and fight Mungra!"

No one came, and after waiting another minute, the large goblin began to hurl insults in a sneering and derisive tone.

But everything stopped when two men entered the room at the back and walked down the long aisle.

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the M.C. cried out, "I give you -- the only man insane enough to fight the mountain queen and live to tell of it -- though he's never prevailed -- JONnaaaaAAAS BULL!!"

As the cheers grew to a deafening pitch, one of the men turned to the other, "You don't have to do this, Jonas."

"I know that Sully," Jonas smiled, "I want to. I'm the only one who keeps coming back and they waive the entrance fee for me every time. They also pay me pretty well for this."

"Oh yeah," the other man nodded thoughtfully, "Why not? You're good for their business, Jonas. You come here every month to fight them and they beat the shit out of you over the course of four shows during the weekend. Look around you, fool. These fine respectable people are here to see you die. They leave when it's all over and go back to their boring lives, and won't think about you until the next month. They're not the ones who have to scrape you off the floor with a dustpan, are they?

No, 'cause that's my job.

Every month, it's the same thing. You come back here and disappear for the weekend somewhere and you turn up for these shows where they give you enough punishment to kill most any man in here, and then it's up to me to come after the last show to gather up what's left of you."

More of the audience saw Jonas then and a roar of approval and recognition went up. Jonas smiled and raised his arms to egg them on.

"You can bitch all you like, Sully," he said, "but we're not exactly millionaires yet, are we? We scratch around at all kinds of odd jobs. Doing this goes a long way to keeping up both fed. Besides, I kind of like it. Why don't you stick around to see this just one time?"

"Because we're friends," the older man said, "We've been friends for a long time, Bully-boy. What would it do for me to watch my friend get hurt? I got my hands full for the next week and a half just trying to patch you up. Even if you don't do this final show this time, you'll need me just to come and help you get out of your bedroll tomorrow morning so you can have a piss.

Fuck," he snorted disgustedly, "I even have to hold you up sometimes."

Just then, Mungra saw Jonas through the smoke and the lights and she charged the cage wall, roaring and snarling as she tried to break through the bars, her tusks almost gleaming in the light.

"There!" she yelled to the crowd, "There is man!" She spit at the crowd in her hatred of them. "One man to fight us. Only man here. You," she sneered at them all, "You not men." She shook her head and growled out one word.

"Pussies."

Just then, a female voice rose out of the crowd and a woman in maybe her thirties stepped up. "Bitch!" she yelled, as the other two goblins walked over with a bit of interest, "You hurt my sister! Three years, she's been in the hospital where you put her. Three years and she'll never be the same. I'll kill you!"

The M.C. stepped forward to try to calm the woman, but the goblins egged her on, calling to her and beckoning lewdly, thrusting their hips at her.

Mungra laughed, "Woman better than men here." She looked around, "Woman want to fight Mungra."

She turned and sank into a crouch, spreading her knees as she licked her lips wickedly, "Come, pretty girl. Taste what sister had to have every night. She not happy without this."

"You LYING piece of SHIT!" the woman screamed back and for a moment, the M.C. had his hands full trying to hold the seething woman back.

The atmosphere in the place was nearly humming now, the flames of their prurient thoughts fanned brightly at this unexpected turn. The M.C. was doing his best to try to reason with her, but the woman glowered at Mungra, and she wasn't having any of it.

"I came here to beat the HELL out of that thing that you keep here for what she did to poor Becky," she said. "Here's your fucking money," she said angrily as she slapped down a gold coin, "Where do I have to sign?"

Sully stared, "He's -- he's gonna let her go in there? They'll tear her to pieces."

Jonas leaned over and smiled as he spoke in a low voice, "I uh, ... I wouldn't think of trying to save her if that's what you're thinking, Sully. Or are you now interested enough to stay and watch?

Don't worry, old friend, I'll get her out of there, but not after she's whipped these people up this way. Not right yet, anyway."

Sully stared, "You can't be serious."

"Just calm down, Sully," Jonas said as he saw a pair of young women approaching him, "Make nice for the people, ok?"

He smiled graciously as he took their autograph books and signed them, listening politely as first one and then the other of them gushed some nonsense to him. As they were about to walk away, one of them turned back suddenly and opened his cape to slide her hand over his chest as she stretched up to kiss his cheek, whispering her desire to him as she did it. The pair of them walked away to the sounds of a few catcalls to them from the audience near enough to have seen it. They grinned and strutted a little, laughing as they went.

Sully couldn't believe it. "You have fans?"

Jonas shrugged, "You play your cards right, Sully, and there's always at least one who'll decide that Jonas Bull's friend and manager is plenty good enough if she can't quite get to the one that she really wants."

He sighed, "I'm only a little famous in here. Nobody will even nod to me if they see me out in the street."

"Ladies and Gentlemen," the M.C. boomed out at the crowd, "It seems that we have a challenger for Mungra and her girls, a bit of a grudge match, as it were. I'm sure that Jonas won't mind waiting."

The angry woman now stood near the cage door yelling what to her might pass for hard words while the goblins reached for her through the bars. They snarled as three men armed with cattle prods threatened them, but they drew back far enough so that the door might be opened. The woman took off her coat and stood there in jeans and a white blouse. After a moment's hesitation where it looked as though she might come to her senses, she stepped inside and the door was closed.

The other two stepped back as she walked toward the mountain queen, who stood with a smile curling past the tusks on her lower jaw.

The woman walked right up and threw what was mostly her first and last punch in this.

It didn't take all that long, really. She swung at Mungra, who allowed it and then stood with the same smile on her face as the woman stared in disbelief for a moment as she realized that defeating a mountain goblin was perhaps not as easily accomplished as it might seem -- without at least an elephant gun or a mace of some kind.

Mungra proceeded to wipe the floor with her, and it wasn't hard to tell that she was holding back a little, trying not to kill the fool. Even so, she threw her against the cage wall a few times, just enough to keep the woman's temper flaring brightly enough to shake the stars that she was seeing away a little and keep coming back for more.

Mungra was a little methodical about it after the first minute, tearing off parts of the blouse until she had it torn and ripped-through enough to slap her victim down and tear it clean off her. The woman managed to get to her knees, clearly dazed as Mungra nodded to her handmaidens and they stepped forward laughing to rip the woman's brassiere off.

Her pants were next a minute later as the pair pushed her over backwards, grabbed the cuff of a pant leg each and ran laughing around the cage, dragging the now-screaming fool around so that she slammed into the cage several times from their turns. They stepped away from her as she lay there groaning and holding her ribs and head.

By that point, the poor woman put up no fight at all as they pulled her jeans and underwear off.

Mungra walked over to where her victim lay with a crooked smile, but the sounds of the crowd's hatred rose then and she charged the cage wall, glaring her own hatred right back at them.

More than one mug sailed through the air to crash against the bars.

Mungra howled out her rage at them. "You! You NEXT, little males!"

She turned away and strutted toward the moaning woman in a bit of triumph.

The others grabbed the woman by the wrists and pulled her up cruelly, until she was held there, pulled back against one of them, who licked her cheek and ear as she crooned to her. The other handmaiden knelt down and forced the woman's knees apart as Mungra sank down to look and smile.

A hush fell over the crowd as Mungra reached out slowly and a moment later the woman groaned a little piteously.

Mungra pulled her hand back and turned to the crowd with a soft smile.

You could have heard a pin drop in the hush as Mungra licked her fingers lasciviously and grinned.

"So sweet and wet," she nodded, before she held up her hand for a moment.

She rose up to stand in front of the naked woman and she pulled the long hair away from her face as she leaned in and kissed her very softly. The woman only moaned a little, so the goblin ran her large hands over the breasts there and though she said it loud enough to be heard in the hush, she crooned to her victim a little softly all the same.

"Not fight anymore," she said, "Men not save you. You sleep in my cage tonight. Mungra make you happy. You not need men."

She sank down slowly, keeping a hand on one breast as her other hand slid down over the now-heaving ribs until she was facing the woman's sex and she leaned in to begin, quite obviously delighted and pleased.

The brown-haired victim in this writhed a little to try to pull herself away, but the goblin who held her fast from behind stepped up her quiet words and kisses.

Mungra licked for a few minutes and there was no sound from the audience, other than a combined gasp when the goblin slid her long tongue in a little slowly to the hilt and the audience heard the victim's loud moan as it became obvious to everyone that she wasn't fighting anymore. Her hips bucked a little now and then, and in only seconds it seemed, Mungra's conquest was almost complete as the woman threw back her head and cried out.

Jonas looked over at his friend and smiled, since Sully's mouth hung open far enough to look like a fly trap as he gaped.

"Think I ought to go in now, or do you think that the lady would be pissed if I tried to drag her out?"

Sully blinked and looked over for a moment. He was about to speak when his attention was drawn to the cage once more. The woman had been let down to a sitting position, her arms held behind her now as the mountain queen stepped over her hips to straddle them as she crouched just a little.