The Great Khan Ch. 03

Khorijin looked at her sister-wife with a new interest. "Are you educated, Toragana?"

A small shrug. "I can read the Uyghur script and I have a rudimentary knowledge of Chinese characters and some math. Having been raised by my father, I have a more than passing familiarity with the necessities of clan administration. If his womenfolk did such things, he had more men to put in the saddle to fight with."

"Lot of good it did him," Khorijin grunted, unable to resist the jibe. "So, upon Delger's death, they elected you khan of the Sukh Confederacy. Because of your skills with words and figures?"

Toragana nodded. "I would imagine that is mostly it. But I was overruled at the kurultai, where I had advised that we not wage war on the Tengger, at least not yet. I said we needed to organize and be more prepared. But my people wanted revenge and we moved against you, hoping our numbers would suffice to exact that vengeance."

"Revenge for revenge, doubtless based on a need for revenge," Sarantuya sighed. "Such is the way of the tribes. As it is now, and ever shall be."

"I don't think that's what Boldbator wants," Toragana pointed out. "He seeks to unite the people of the steppes, not only for the glory of the Tengger and his own name, but because he wishes to see us strong enough to surmount the Wall and to show China that we are to be feared."

"To conquer the Song," Khorijin agreed. "A feat like no other. The last people to even seriously attempt it were the Xiongnu. If you believe soft Uyghurs, that was over fifty generations ago. True, we have raided the Khitans and the Jurchen Kingdoms of the north, but to actually pierce the heart of China..."

At that very moment, the door to the ger opened and Galina shuffled in, breathing heavily and trying not to groan. It was obvious she was in great discomfort. She grimaced as she pulled the door shut to keep out the wind and then turned to hobble toward the kang.

Toroagna looked on in concern. "Should we not help her?"

"Why?" Khorijin asked, apparently confused. "Her pain is of no consequence to me and rather pleasing, to be honest."

"But she is your sister-wife," protested the newest consort of the khan. "Do we-"

"You need to understand, Sukh," interjected Sarantuya, her voice soft but firm. "We have struck a balance, the three of us, of Boldbator's wives. We hate one another, but if we cannot take each other's lives, then at least we can relish one another's various pains."

"That's just stupid," Toragana muttered, getting up from her seat and moving quickly toward Galina, who was not even a third of the way across the ger yet. "Come, sister, allow me to-"

"I need no help from you, Mongol!" hissed the Chinese girl venemously, her eyes flashing as she yanked the sleeve of her robe from Toragana's hand. "You may be my khan's wife, but you are no sister to me!"

But Galina found herself stopped short, pinned suddenly by Toragana's hand around her throat and squeezing. While she was nowhere near as strong as Boldbator, this outright demonstration of aggression terrified her. Her black eyes went wide in fear.

"Then let us have an understanding between us, oh blossom of China," Toragana said levelly, looking directly into Galina's eyes. "I am indeed Tengger Boldbator's wife, sharing First Wife rank with Sarantuya. You, on the other hand, are simply a concubine, and a soft Chinese harlot at that."

She increased the pressure around Galina's neck and leaned closer. "Treat me as anything less than First Wife again and I'll strip you and beat you and leave you for the horses to fuck. If this is the game you want to play, I will play it. I may be a Sukh, my clan destroyed, but I remember the lessons I was taught very well of how to deal with errant servants."

Galina struggled as she choked but could not get away. Tears were streaming down her cheeks.

"I have no reason to despise you, not yet," Toragana continued. "Clearly my husband sees something in your that merits your continued existence, so I will trust to his wisdom on the matter, much as he did with me."

Her face was now right in Galina's, no more than an inch apart. "Now then... do I call you sister? Or are you just a Chinese whore of no account to me?"

Galina trembled but then slowly and gently pressed her lips to Toragana's kissing her almost reverently. The Mongol woman released her grip on Galina's throat and put her arms around her sister-bride, kissing her back. Sarantuya and Khorijin looked on in no small wonder.

The kiss ended several seconds later, with Galina looking up into Toragana's eyes. "I am your sister wife, my lady."

Toragana nodded. "I am happy for your sisterhood, Galina."

"Please, call me Mai," whispered the Chinese girl, smiling weakly. "It is what my friends call me."

With Toragana's support, Mai limped to the kang and eased herself onto it, lying on her stomach. Toragana removed her silks and grimaced as she noted how her sister-wife's notch was still distended and various angry shades of red and purple. She would almost see it throbbing. Boldbator's cock felt monstrous in her, she dreaded to think of how it must have felt in a tiny thing like Mai.

She began massaging Mai's weary body, hoping to relieve some of the pain.

***

"Are you sure this is wise, brother?" Kula asked, scowling as he looked out over the horizon, as if straining to see something. "We do not know if the clans you have summoned will prove friendly."

"Not even the most treacherous of the families would dare to violate the sanctity of the gorugen," Boldbator replied, sitting unconcernedly atop his steed. "If they determine fear me so, they will simply decline our invitation to the hunt, possibly refusing to accept my overseeing of it as an excuse. That, in and of itself, would tell me much, even if they do not raise a blade against me."

"There's no small stigma in not attending the Great Hunt." Kula mused, secretly hoping that a few of the clans indeed tried something. He was eager to split some skulls. "To not have your warriors show up to display their prowess, it's a decided risk, simply to prove a point to a rival khan."

"A few will refuse, no doubt," Boldbator agreed. "More will attend, simply to see proof of the rumours that I now sit atop the plunder of Targetai. Even if all the tribes conspired to destroy us under the pretense of attending the gorugen, they must know I'd never allow them to find it."

The younger brother sighed. Such machinations were too much for him and seemed un-Mongol. How Boldbator managed was beyond him. He was the ultimate expression, in Kula's eyes, of a true Son and Warrior of the Steppe. And yet so much more.

"I would welcome their attempt," he grunted, fingering the haft of his well-worn axe. "My blade thirsts for blood. But I suppose the song of the bowstring must do for now."

"You'll have to work hard to outperform Khorijin this year," laughed the khan. "Her arrows fly true, even unto the heart of the smallest steppe mouse. Her skill is second to none.

"I'd tell her I was proud of her, if I didn't think it'd go right to her fat head," Kula muttered. "With two wives, I hardly need another insufferable woman around."

"Oh, you complain endlessly," Boldbator laughed, always amused by his brother's complaining. In truth, Kula had little to complain about- he fought like a devil, could do so often, drank as he pleased and had women to fuck, too many of them to hear him tell it. Yes, a rough life indeed for the younger Tengger brother. "Your life is hardly miserable."

"True enough, but one can always aspire to more." Kula granted as he squinted toward the north. "I see dust."

"Aye," Boldbator agreed, having espied it a minute or so earlier. "Probably the Tarkhut clan, led by their khan, Yelgrun. They could make it here readily enough in such a short time. For any clan farther afield to have arrived so quickly would be a sign of trying to curry favour with the family hosting the hunt."

"I know little about the Tarkhut," Kula admitted. "Are they a worthy family?"

"I cannot say directly, as I've never met them, to the best of my knowledge." Boldbator answered. "But father seemed to regard them well enough when I heard him speak of them. I will trust to his wisdom on the matter."

The brothers watched as the dust cloud brew closer, now churning with shapes. Horsemen could be seen, close to four score of them. At their front rode a man in a fine sheepskin del and missing his right eye, over which he wore a protective leather patch. They slowed to a walk about a hundred ald away as they approached.

"Hail, Tengger!" the man in front called out once they were close enough to speak. "I am Yelgrun, orkhan of the Tarkhut family and lord of the clans around Baljun Lake. We come at the summons of your gorugen to show our worth."

The older brother nodded. "I am Boldbator, khan of the Tengger clan and its vassal families. I welcome you, Yelgrun, on behalf of my people."

Yelgrun rode up, still assessing Boldbator with a keen eye. Though the del he wore hid the younger man's body, he could tell that the Tengger lord was not a man to be casually tested or trifled with. Beside him sat a broad, hatchet-faced man who wore a perpetual glower. A fearsome axe sat exposed on his belt.

"My younger brother, Kula," Boldbator mentioned, tilting his head toward his sibling. "He said he knew nothing of your clan, so I brought him to meet you and judge for himself."

"Do not let him judge us until he sees our warriors on the hunt!" Yelgrun said, turning to grin back at his warriors, who laughed and then cheered.

Boldbator smiled. It felt good to be among proper Mongols.

***

"Look at them all..." muttered Kula to his mother, who stood nearby him. Turkina watched impassively, her keen hazel eyes surveying the plain that spread before them, now punctuated with groups of unfamiliar gers. They kept their settlements a respectful distance from the Tengger clusters, in deference to the overlords of these lands. News had travelled fast of Boldbator's stunning defeat of the Sukh Confederacy, when by all accounts the Tengger should have been annihilated.

"There must be at least a thousand gers, meaning quite possibly five thousand horsemen. It will be a grand hunt indeed." Kula said with grim satisfaction.

Turkina nodded. "If these clans can be reasoned with, perhaps they will be the seed of the army your brother needs to begin his ambitions."

"Reasoned with? More like bribed or bought," Kula grunted. "They've all heard he sits on the treasure of Targetai and they want a piece of it, the jackals."

"And if you had known that such vast wealth had been in the hands of another clan, my son, what would you have done about it?"

He considered and shrugged. "Ridden forth to destroy them and take it before it could be used against us, I would imagine."

Turkina smiled and shook her head. Kula was in all ways unlike his older brother, aside from his capacity for extraordinary violence. He preferred doing to thinking, worried that if he thought too much, he might wake up one morning and find himself transformed into a flabby Uyghur monk. She thought that would surely be Kula's greatest nightmare.

She thought back to when she had been teaching him how to make love to a woman when he was younger, becoming a man. He had Boldbator's brute strength and will to dominate, but he never stopped being selfish when pillowing. His only answer was to fuck a woman hard until he came and she either came or passed out. At least Boldbator and even Khorijin had been receptive to her teachings about skill with one's tongue, fingers and other body parts.

She admitted that she'd enjoyed the raw power of Kula's body, but rarely had he met her other needs when it came to sexual pleasure. As soon as she could, she had stopped training him and allowed him to exercise his aggressive passions on some of the other clan girls or the slaves. Kula didn't seem to notice or mind. He just wanted something to fuck after he was done practicing with his weapons or wrestling. Turkina's body thanked her.

Khorijin had been harder to give up, and she had not done it completely. There were still some times where the mother and daughter craved one another's touch and made love. Khorijin, always feeling like she was meant to be a man, a warrior, and that the gods had played a cruel trick on her, at least knew how to make love like a woman when appropriate.

Boldbator could not be given up. He was not hers to give up in that manner. He was the khan, and if he wished for her body, her submission and compliance, he had it. She somehow doubted most mothers perpetuated these circumstances, but she felt no guilt on the subject. Her children were great and glorious, in no small part due to her teachings. All her teachings.

"Have faith in your brother's intent, my son," she said finally, knowing that Kula would always obey Boldbator, but an assuring word to one's child was never amiss. "He clearly has no intent of hoarding the treasure to himself. At times when talking, he seems almost too eager to get rid of it."

"I am glad to share that small wisdom with him, then." Kula said. "Nothing but trouble. What did all that wealth ever do for Targetai or the Sukh?"

"Yet you seek to plunder the Song, to take their vast riches from them?" Turkina asked, smirking.

"Aye, as a symbol of our might, our prowess." Kula declared. Clearly the Song treasure was completely different in his mind. "A man can only collect so many damn ears. And should we succeed, then no clan will ever need to try and take the plunder of another ever again, they will all be drowning in their own gold."

"My fear, then, would be that the tribes would grow soft," she said mildly. "Falling into the traps of the so-called civilized southerners, living in a lax manner, moving to cities or becoming farmers, forgetting the wide blue skies and the joys of riding."

"Pah!" Kula spat, scowling. "And therein lies the trap of this damned plunder. Gold filigree weakens steel. Refined silk replaces stout armour. Such riches are a cursed incentive."

"Spoken like a true Mongol," Turkina laughed, knowing that Kula could never change. It wasn't in him. She could see Boldbator or even Khorijin falling prey to such enticements, possibly, but not her younger son. He was not Boldbator's equal, except in stubbornness. "Will Khorijin join the hunt?"

"I can't imagine keeping her away, short of killing her," Kula replied. "While not forbidden, it's pretty much unheard of for women to participate in the gorugen, let alone fight as she does."

"Knowing Boldbator and that mind of his, he'll probably happily allow her to hunt, since it would confuse and throw off the other clans, especially once they see her skill with a bow."

"She's every bit as good as my brother or myself," Kula agreed. "And if anyone protests or condemns her involvement, Boldbator will probably ask the accuser if he wishes to test her blade. Given that she killed Dogar, the Sukh champion, I doubt anyone with a brain will."

Turkina nodded. They'd simply have to wait and see.

***

Nearly four thousand warriors had now spread out in a large circle coverall several thousand ald. The idea of the gorugen was to herd or stampede all wildlife in the area into the circle, at which point, warriors on horseback would compete by killing an animal with their bow and arrow. The skill of the shot was what counted, not the danger of the animal. Someone who killed Ezen Bar, Lord Tiger, with one arrow was a man indeed, but the same held true of anyone who could manage to hit a field mouse from a gallop. Opportunity and decisiveness were every bit as important as the hunter's skill and bravery.

Boldbator sat atop his pony, gazing out over the net of warriors, spanning toward the horizon. Holding a hunt at this time of year, when the prey was plentiful, meant that many, if not most of the attending warriors would get some satisfaction from the event. The drive to herd the steppe animals had taken some hours, but now would the hunt proper begin. He could see both Kula and Khorijin nearby, their eyes glinting with that familiar eagerness for the gorugen to get underway.

"My khan..." said a voice from behind him.

He turned his head and raised an eyebrow in surprise- Toragana rode up slowly on a pony, dressed in a sturdy but light del, wearing breeches and a light cap to protect her ears from the stiff winds. Her long hair was tied up in a queue to keep it out of her way. On her belt sat a knife, and on her hip, a bow, along with a quiver of arrows.

"Am I to understand that you wish to try your hand at the hunt?" he asked. "I do not mind, as long as you don't make a fool of me."

"I have hunted before, husband," she said, now beside him. "And while I may not expect to win the hunt, I would at least show my worth as your wife and orkhan of the Sukh people you now lead."

Boldbator considered. "Where came you by that bow?" he asked.

Toragana almost blushed as she looked at the weapon. It was mine from Nomgor, you must have plundered it from our ger. I did not think you'd mind me using it again.

Boldbator grunted and then nodded his assent to her participation. Half a second later, he closed his eyes in despair at the sound of his sister's voice.

"Brother, you cannot be thinking of letting this harlot hunt with us!" Khorijin said loudly as she rode up, scowling. "She'll embarrass us all!"

"I don't know that for sure," Boldbator shrugged. "I at least owe her the opportunity to prove herself."

"She is the failed leader of a defeated family!" Khorijin said through gritted teeth. "What good can she possibly be?"

"My family is commanded by your brother," Toragana said evenly, looking at Khorijin. "It is not wise to call any vassals of the Tengger khan failures, as it reflects poorly on him. I may have lost the battle to your clan, but I stood against Tengger Boldbator in single combat, never wavering. I have earned this chance to prove myself."

"She's got you there, sister." Kula grunted as he rode up beside Khorijin. "And while I do not doubt that you're a better hunter than our brother's newest bride, something tells me she will also not be the worst hunter today."

Khorijin coloured in fury and snapped her reins, turning about and riding off to resume her position. Kula smirked and shook his head before following.

"You handled yourself well," Boldbator said, looking at his wife. "I am not displeased."

"I may not be much of a warrior, my khan, but I will never fail to give a good account of myself on your behalf." Toragana replied. "I am not the best speaker or diplomat, nor the best hunter or fighter. But I am who I am and proud of it. Let me show you now."

Boldbator drew the horn from his belt and blew a long, ululating note on it, signaling the beginning of the gorugen. He heard his new wife shout and snap her reins, galloping off toward the west, her hunting call mixing in with thousands of others.

He threw back his head and laughed. To feel this good was worth dying for.

***

"Bariin suul baisnaas batganii tolgoi baisan ni deer."

"Better to be the head of a wasp than the tail of a lion."

Kula shouted, urging his mount on while holding his bow ready, an arrow nocked. To his distress and annoyance, the area he was now in had hunters rushing about everywhere, looking frantically for game. So much dust was being kicked up that it was often hard to see one's fellow hunters as more than grey silhouettes, forget the prey they were all searching for.