Message-ID: <22534asstr$949137003@assm.asstr-mirror.org> X-Original-Message-ID: From: artie Subject: {ASSM} REV "Life Cycle of the Kaelen 1/5" by artie (MF ROM SCIFI?) Date: Sat, 29 Jan 2000 04:10:03 -0500 Path: assm.asstr-mirror.org!not-for-mail Approved: Newsgroups: alt.sex.stories.moderated,alt.sex.stories Followup-To: alt.sex.stories.d X-Archived-At: X-Moderator-Contact: ASSTR ASSM moderation X-Story-Submission: X-Moderator-ID: Lambchop, dennyw <1st attachment, "lck1.txt" begin> (c) Copyright 1999 by artie@netgate.net This work may not be reposted or redistributed without the prior express written permission of the author. A work of fiction, meant for adults. Read something else if you are not an adult, or are offended by stories with sexual content. Then again, if all you're looking for is in-out, in-out, in-out, you should probably read something else. I welcome constructive comments. Enjoy. Thanks to Homer Vargas and Denny for their insightful comments. Posted 8/19/99, revised 1/22/2000. Life Cycle of the Kaelen Ellen Grode, Mission Commander Dale Kendai, Mission Specialist Part 1 Introduction This is our initial report on the cultural and anthropological investigation of the planet cataloged by Nikolai and Kingsley (hereafter referred to as N/K) as "Island." They chose this moniker based on the topology of the planet, consisting of many thousands of islands ranging in area from a few square kilometers to a few thousand square kilometers. N/K used the term "Kaelen" to refer to an insect species they observed in close contact with the humanoid (human) population. For reasons which will become clear in this report, we refer to the planet, the people, and the insect collectively as "Kaelen." When referring to individual insects, we use the term "kaelen." While a linguistic anomaly, we will honor native usage and use the single word "kaelen" to refer to the insects in the singular, plural, or collective sense. The reader is assumed to be familiar with N/K's orbital survey report [1]. While the physical data reported therein is accurate, the cultural and anthropological contents should be dismissed as wild speculation. In their otherwise precise report they comment that both they and their linguistic analysis artificial intelligence had difficulty dealing with anomalies surrounding the kaelen and their role in (human) society. Indeed, they chose to treat the kaelen as pets of the humans, in the face of many linguistic and cultural clues to the contrary. The kaelen The kaelen seemingly fill the common insect niche in the planetary ecology. While the kaelen have four legs rather than six as in insects on many systems, they share enough common traits with traditional arthropods, such as a chitinous exoskeleton, three main body parts, compound eyes, etc., that we classify them as equivalents to the traditional class Insecta. As we learned however, they are far more than mere insects. N/K identified a number of characteristics distinctive to the kaelen. First are the large, feather-like antennae, which can be half as long as the insect's body. Second is the large ribbed abdomen. Third, and most puzzling to many, was the fact the kaelen observed seemed to all be male. While the number of individuals sampled by N/K was of necessity (and thankfully) small, all were genetic males. Adult males average about twelve inches in length; juvenile males average from eight to ten inches in length. N/K speculated, as have many xenoentomologists, on the role of the large feathered antennae. They are indeed sensory organs of breathtaking sensitivity and versatility. In their report, N/K speculated that the kaelen could detect the probe fields projected from their survey ship onto the planetary surface below. N/K were taken to task by many for this, with the repeated argument that since even wide band probe fields represent incursions only a few centimeters in diameter, and sample such a low percentage of the energy at the probe interface, that they are virtually undetectable. We demonstrated the kaelen can and do detect probe fields, and do so in calm meteorological conditions from meters away. This is why we have so few close-up wide band recordings, having to make do with biometric recordings made from our own ears and eyes. Initial Survey Steps Our ten month subspace journey from Survey Outpost 12 to the planet was uneventful and yet insightful. It gave us time to study in detail all the data recorded by N/K's initial orbital survey, adapt to the target environment, and practice language skills. We entered a standard synchronous orbit above the planet. No artificial radiation sources were detected over a 48 hour scan, so probe fields were projected onto the planet surface. Initial readings from the target area were used to refine our environmental simulation of the planetary surface in the ship's exercise and recreation deck, so we could improve our environmental accommodation. Of particular interest to us was developing melanin levels sufficient to tolerate exposure to the local sun. Put bluntly, we had to work on our tans as the people of the planet are mostly nude in tropical conditions. The Polynesian heritage we shared, and which helped select us for this study, gave us a good start. We should mention a bit more on our selection for this mission. As usual, we were selected by the Survey AI and offered this mission. We eagerly accepted. Our Polynesian heritage allowed us to fit the physical characteristics of the native peoples with only slight cosmetic alteration. Of vital importance was our complete ease with insects. Finding a team with the requisite linguistic and anthropological skills was not sufficient; what was needed was a team who would not scream at insects this size crawling on them, and living with them. As is also common with many survey teams, Dale and I are husband and wife, and are amenable to the close quarters and working relationships demanded by the long subspace flight to the target planet, and the survey itself. Based on our review of the N/K survey, we posed a number of hypotheses. First, we assumed the kaelen's sensory apparatus was a keen olfactory receptor. We would be coming in as outsiders, and would smell different. We wished to minimize this difference as much as possible. Second, we assumed the kaelen could probably sense our probe fields, especially high bandwidth probe fields, and planned a set of trials to test this hypothesis. We structured further plans along the rejection or acceptance of this important hypothesis. Following the agreed upon plan, we studied a small island group a few thousand kilometers from where we would eventually make planetfall. We made use of the ship's probe fields, tractor beams, and replicators to provide us with native air, water, and food. This allowed us to immerse ourselves in the native environment as much as possible, and adapt to the climate, as well as food, drink, and living conditions. Weaning ourselves from modern sanitary facilities and learning to use and live with chamber pots was difficult. We wished to use the probe fields in the standard way; making audiovisual recordings of native interactions to enable us to study not only linguistic structures, but also develop better cultural models. We initiated trials to determine if the kaelen could sense probe fields. Experiments repeatedly showed that under calm meteorological conditions an adult male kaelen could detect a wide band probe field at a distance of 2.6 meters with a standard deviation of .2 meters (n=126). Low bandwidth (sound only) probe fields were detectable at a distance of 60 centimeters in calm meteorological conditions (n=44). The kaelen became agitated at the presence of probe fields, and attempted to make physical contact with the probe fields. Post-trial analysis of the initial experiment pointed to the largest variable in detection being meteorological -- the more unsettled the weather, the lower the probability of detection. A quickly planned and run experiment pointed to local atmospheric electrical activity, especially the presence of ions and moisture, as reducing detection probability. These results suggested we could use audio only probes in a satisfactory manner, although not close-up, and high-level audiovisual probes very rarely. Using this approach, we studied a select group for a period of three standard months. Our language skills increased, as would be expected, but we had many difficulties with the shipboard AI linguistic system, overruling it with increasing frequency. After another month of mainly audio survey of our target group, we initiated insertion onto the planetary surface. Insertion is always critical, often times defining success or failure of the overall survey. It is axiomatic in the Survey Service that a survey mission of this nature is a mission for life, a life which may turn out to be both short and unpleasant, as every Survey student learns from studying the records of the infamous Ballou/Martin expedition. Since the planet is technologically primitive, conditions effectively required that we be inserted totally devoid of detectable artificial instrumentalities. We would land on our island in a boat replicated from one used at our study site some thousands of kilometers away, and we would land naked. We planned to make planetfall and insertion along the edge of a seasonal storm; this would provide enough disturbances for probe and effector fields to be used without risking detection. Once landfall was made, we would rely only on our own biometric relays sending what we experienced through our ears and eyes back to the ship. Given the kaelen's proven sensitivity to probe fields, we were initially concerned about our own implants, but quickly concluded we couldn't do anything about them. We each had the standard biometric monitoring and relay equipment: power pack and main node in the right femur, link package behind the breastbone, and the usual interface nodes along the spine and in the skull. If these proved to be a difficulty, we'd have no choice but to abort the mission. In planning insertion, we gave our ship's AI leeway in guiding us through the storm system; we were to be delivered to the target island without serious injury. While we thought our instructions to the AI clear, in retrospect we neglected to consider the latitude given the AI, and the seemingly wry sense of humor it used in interpreting our instructions. We suggest this topic would be a fertile field of study, and one of substantial interest to future survey teams. The remainder of this report is written from the perspective of Mission Commander Grode. Mission Specialist Kendai concurs with this report, and will file a separate report in the future dealing with his specialty, planetary ecology. While some may decry the reporting style, and we can hear them already over the light years wondering where we were at Survey when they taught us to write objective reports, we respond with the comment made by Martin in a similar situation: Life is subjective. Similarly, some may decry the intense sexual content of this report. Indeed, many who knew us closely at Survey may find it difficult to believe. That's life. Insertion and First Contact I thought I had been clear and concise with the AI. We would be tractored down through the atmosphere to our sail craft. Both Dale and I have substantial experience sailing small craft. The AI would use ship's sensors and effectors to guide us along the edge of the storm for two days, then deliver us onto the target landfall without serious injury. The goal was to simulate a craft taken greatly off course by a storm. Emergency extraction would take place up to the point of landfall if and only if our lives were threatened. Our target island was midsize, with a population of about four hundred split among three main villages. The area and village we chose had a number of fresh water ponds, waterfalls, and areas with deliberately cultivated crops. As is common in these societies, dwellings are small huts, some clustered, and some spaced out. The bloody AI put us through two and a half days of hell before dumping us shipwrecked on a beach just before local sunset. Countless times we fully expected to feel the tingle of effector fields surrounding us and pulling us from the edge of death. Evidently "serious injury" to our AI did not include being half-drowned, battered, bruised, and exhausted -- physically, mentally, emotionally. I was almost overjoyed at being slammed by the surf face first into the sand of that beach. Dale and I huddled together for a while, still lashed by wind and sea. We were pulled up onto shore by a group of males in a fishing party. As recounted by N/K, nets are used to catch fish. As they pulled us up to safety on the shore, we saw our small boat in pieces on the coral reef and along the shore. We knew we'd be identified as outsiders, but our studies so far indicated that strangers were welcomed. We'd deliberately immersed ourselves in a slightly different dialect -- one which would allow us to communicate, but would still identify us as not-from-here. This is an important survey guideline: don't try to be what you're not; you can't fool natives. We were questioned briefly by one of the men. Since the societal structure is uniformly matriarchal over all the areas surveyed both by us and by N/K, I answered. This was a good plan, as Dale had swallowed a large amount of seawater. As he was being moved, he vomited up this seawater, which contained a couple of small fish, and lost consciousness. I quickly verified his vital signs; once we hit the beach emergency extraction was cancelled. The ship confirmed that he was merely unconscious, and unharmed. He was battered, bruised, and half drowned, but to the damned AI he was unharmed. We were brought to a small covered area on the outskirts of the village, well sheltered from the storm that continued around us. We waited there for some period of time. I was still so shaken that I didn't consult my retinal chronometer. Our reception committee was startling. We'd speculated at the reception outsiders would receive. Certainly it would be armed men, concerned about protecting the security of their people and lands from possible marauders. But we were approached by a group of eight women, with a larger group of women behind them. The eight who approached us were older women. They were not the oldest, as we could see one or two obviously older women in the second group. But these women were certainly among the elders of the village. More striking was the fact that each of these women had many kaelen riding on her, at least two or three per woman. One woman must have had six or seven; two were old kaelen, and the rest were smaller, younger individuals. As the xenoentomologists suggested, the age of an individual kaelen is easily estimated by size and by the characteristic sheen of the exoskeleton. Older individuals take on a smooth almost gemlike glow. The kaelen were riding on their shoulders, hanging from the woven skirts that are the only clothing worn by both sexes, or on top of their heads in the case of smaller kaelen. The women circled around us. That's when I noticed the noises the kaelen were making. I detected a few different noises. For a moment the women just squatted around us, touching us gently, asking us if we were injured. A couple of the mid-sized kaelen hopped down from their carriers and came to us. Dale was still not quite with it. I watched as a young kaelen, perhaps nine inches long, brushed his leg with its antennae, then walked up his body and up to his head. I felt a brushing sensation on my side, and felt one walking up to sit on my shoulder. Its legs felt slightly sharp, as if barbed, but not painful, very similar to the simulations we'd trained with. As they did this it hit me; we were alive. We'd made planetfall, and survived not only the storm, but also our damned AI. I was able to relax for the first time in days. I was hungry, sore, and tired. Now I could relax, and relax I did, for I was exhausted. One of the women asked our names. We'd decided on local sounding names taken from our sample group, but when she asked me, I said, "Ellen." I pointed to Dale and said, "This is Dale, my husband." She smiled and asked, "You are not from here?" She had a wonderful warm smile. I knew we were safe. I told her we were from far away and had been caught by the storm. She gave us another warm smile. She told us we would be taken to a hut where we could rest and recover; there would be time for more talk in the morning. Three men carried Dale. Two women helped me walk to the hut. I was so tired, yet felt kinship, compassion, and safety. They helped us into the hut. There inside were the typical woven mats. Two sets of gourds were by the entrance: one set containing a mixture of water and fruit juice for us, the other set to be used as chamber pots for waste. As they helped us to the mats, I noticed a number of kaelen climbing up the inside of the hut. I straightened Dale out, moving him to a traditional rescue position on his side, in case he was to vomit up more water. One of the other women helped me lie down next to him. She told me, "He will be fine. You are safe." She held my hand gently, looking down on me. It seemed as if she made a gentle clicking noise a few times. I noticed the kaelen were making noise again as well. She told me "You are safe. Now you should rest, just rest." It felt so good to be lying down again. I was so relaxed; I felt so comforted now. She let my hand down near my side and got up slowly. It seemed as if the kaelen's clicking slowed down after she left. I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer, and drifted to sleep. First Days To acclimatize ourselves, we'd been sleeping on similar mats on our ship for the last almost five months; it hadn't been easy. Still, when I woke in the morning, I couldn't remember a night when I'd slept better. I looked up and saw our kaelen committee still in the top of the hut. I rolled over and looked at Dale. He was sleeping soundly. My retinal chronometer showed it was a little after seven in the morning local time. I made an inquiry to the ship; both our vitals were nominal, which is to say I was hungry from not eating for two days. I sat up and used my chamber pot (something else we'd practiced for months), then had some water and juice. It was delicious. Dale stirred. I greeted him in the local language. We talked briefly; he felt much better, although hungry and sore as well. We heard some motion outside the hut momentarily. He used the chamber pot and we shared the rest of the water. As we did so, our kaelen chorus started in again. We smiled at each other; it was good to be alive. "What should we do while we wait?" I asked him with a smile. He evidently shared my idea, as he moved over and we kissed. We've been lovers for years, as are similar survey teams. Still, there was something special, something more fulfilling, more exciting, about our lovemaking that morning. He caressed my nipples for a while, then slipped inside me as I drew my legs up. Possibly it was the excitement and relief of just being alive, but I came with a suddenness and intensity that surprised me. He followed soon after. As we lay there together afterwards, to our chorus singing a slightly different tune, he looked at me and said something he said rarely. It's something I longed to hear, something every woman longs to hear. He said, "I love you," and he said it with a strength and emotion I'd never heard from him before. I knew he said it from his heart. I held him to me and told him, "I know. I love you, oh I love you." We held each other for a while, until a voice from outside the hut said, "Would you like to talk?" Custom held that we put on our skirts and invite the person in. We did so. We were joined by two of the older women from our group last night. Each woman had two or three kaelen, all older adults. They joined in the song of their kin in the thatch of the hut. One asked, "Did you sleep well?" I smiled and said, "Better than in a long time." "You are from far away," she said, her face, her voice, her person radiating calm. I sighed a little. Their language didn't have the words or the concepts for how far away. "Yes, very far." "Why have you come here?" she asked simply. This was the big question. We'd planned and modeled how to answer. But I threw our planning aside and said, "We wish to live with you and learn your ways." I guess that's the simplest way to describe what a cultural anthropologist and a planetary ecologist do. "Why?" she said. I thought of all the data we'd reviewed. All the speculations of both others and ourselves we'd discussed. All the anomalies. It was such a peaceful place. I looked in her eyes and said, "You have something special here. We want to learn it, live it." That's what we wanted to do; live with them, live as they did. She smiled and nodded her head. She looked at her companion, who looked a bit older, as did her kaelen. She too nodded and smiled. Our questioner extended her hands to me. "You are welcome here. You must be hungry." Dale and I laughed. "Yes, we are." The hut was crowded with the four of us. The two women left first; Dale followed me out. Others were waiting outside and helped us stand. As was Dale, I was a little wobbly from the intensity of recent events -- either our raft ordeal, or our lovemaking. The others looked expectantly at the older of the two women. She turned to them and said, "They are from far away. They are here to learn from us. They are welcome as family." That generated some noise from the crowd of twenty or more of both sexes and all ages. We received hugs from the adults. The women hugged me. Dale got hugs from both men and women. I noticed a number of the women seemed to be sizing him up. As our hosts started walking to another area, I took his hand and tucked it into the back of my skirt, pulling him along in the manner traditional for a wife to take her husband. I heard some noises of surprise from women behind me. I didn't look back, but it seemed the women giving him the eye didn't have kaelen with them. Neither did I. That was the first time I hypothesized kaelen were an indication of bonding, of marriage. We went to a central clearing and sat with a slightly larger group of men and women. There we were presented with more drink, and the wonderful bread that forms the staple of their diet. This bread was only briefly mentioned by N/K, but plays a vital role in both the culture and our understanding of it. It is made from two different cultivated roots. The roots are skinned, washed, then mashed. This is done separately. Either root alone is not palatable. But when mixed together in the proper proportions and baked, a wonderful product results. The mixing, kneading, and baking is a major task of the women during the day. It took days for me to learn to get it right. Cooking this bread is a process between baking and steaming. A smoky, steamy fire is built in a hut similar to the ones used as dwellings. The dough is placed on sticks suspended above and around the hot steam to cook. Other things may be added besides the two roots, and cooking time varies from a few hours to a day. The result is light but filling. Shipboard analysis showed it to be almost nutritionally complete. With a little fish and some fruit, a complete if somewhat bland diet is obtained. One of the kaelen-less women sat near Dale and offered him some bread. Our studies prevailed though, and he respectfully declined her offer (she was quite beautiful) and turned to me. I broke a piece off the chunk given me and offered it to him. He took it, kissing my hand, as was the ritual we'd seen and practiced. I heard an audible sigh of despair, followed by young female laughter. As we ate, we were quizzed again about our arrival and passage through the storm. As I had last night, I told them we were from far away, and didn't know where we were. We had been carried for the storm for at least two days, and wrecked here. Everyone but Dale found the story of his regurgitating two live fish quite humorous. He was asked questions, and answered politely. After a bit the group started separating for their daily tasks. We were told we should rest for a couple of days before joining in with the work. The men spend the days fishing, collecting fruit, collecting and preparing wood for fires, and cultivating crops. The women spend the day raising the young, weaving and mending nets and clothing, preparing breadand other meals. One young woman was assigned to us as a guide. She called herself Dina. She was short, perhaps a head shorter than me, with thick black hair. Her posture was gorgeous, as was the way her hips and breasts swayed as she walked. She had three kaelen riding with her. I though I remembered her in the group with the eldest of the women from last night, but wasn't sure. The village area she showed us was well planned and looked very stable. This was one of the puzzles. How could you have such stability in an island-style culture with no metal tools? They cultivated crops; they were beyond mere hunter/gatherer or slash-and-burn agriculture. They were practicing methodical cultivation. Raiding, piracy, warfare seemed unknown. We had yet to find linguistic equivalents for many of our so-called advanced society's more brutal traits. We visited an area of huts near the freshwater pools. The first pool we visited was large and open to all, and used for swimming and bathing. The second was smaller and more remote. It was obviously for more ceremonial uses, but those weren't spelled out. Along the edge of this area was a spot where it seemed huts had occasionally been burned to the ground. Could it be possible there was violence in this society after all? We returned to the larger fresh water pond and took the time to bathe and relax. We could tell many eyes were upon us. The only other couples there were ones with small children. These women left their kaelen with the children while going into the water, or left the kaelen on the bank while going in with the kids. I started noticing that the vast majority of women having kaelen had only one; those with more than one were treated with great respect, and most of these seemed to be older. Our Dina seemed to be an exception to the rule. Knowing open displays of affection are common in the society, and seeing some in other parts of the pond, I pulled Dale to me and kissed him near the edge of a small waterfall. My motive was to show the other women he was mine. I became quite distracted in his strong arms though. We headed back for a light lunch of more bread and fruit. Dina suggested we might like to nap, and thinking of his holding me earlier, I agreed. We returned to the hut in which we'd spent the night. As we took off our skirts we heard the skittering of three or four kaelen climbing up the inside of the hut. We lay down and snuggled together. I definitely had other ideas, but with our chorus making noise above us again, we quickly fell asleep. Dinner included some cooked fish. Afterwards we retired early. To the accompaniment of our chorus, we made passionate love. I spread Dale on his back and sat on top of him, rocking us to ecstasy. After incredible orgasms for both of us, including one of the few times in my life I'd had multiple orgasms from intercourse alone, we snuggled together. I drew him to my breast and held him there, feeling him sucking gently, as we went to sleep to our chorus. We were given one more day of slack before being put to work. Dina showed us the different areas of the village and helped us choose a hut. We were located in an interesting area, bordering the elders' area and that of the young married people. We were accepted, but still different. The evidently unmarried women, those without kaelen, were becoming more sure that Dale was attached, even though we didn't fit their model. I first worked alongside a group of women of mixed ages, from teens to probably forties, preparing bread. It took a few days before I learned the right consistency and the right mixture; it was a matter of feel and of taste. Poor Dale had a harder time of it. While he was a little taller than most of the natives, and about the same weight; he was much more muscular. He wasn't nimble enough to climb trees, and while he was strong enough to pull nets, his hands were still soft. So he ended up working in the fields. He'd come back in the evening tired and sore. We'd wash, eat, and collapse in our hut, rarely failing to make passionate love, and going to sleep. We always seemed to have one or more kaelen in our hut at night. I quickly learned to love holding him to me, suckling him gently, going to sleep awash in a contentment I had never known before. To my delight, Dale's work was interrupted by storms; as we knew, this was the stormy part of the year. In those times we'd spend more time in our huts. So did the kaelen; we had more visitors during the storms, and more time for even more passionate lovemaking. Questions We knew from our studies the society was matriarchal. The governing group (you couldn't say ruling group, not only because the term wasn't applicable, but because the term didn't exist in their language) was of women of mixed ages. The common factor seemed to be that they each had more than one kaelen. A couple of the women had many. With these women, two of the kaelen at least were older individuals seemingly of the same age; some had three. A few women, older widows, carried their old companions and a bunch of younger, smaller males, distinguishable not only by the difference in size, but also by the gem-like sheen the older males acquire. So the governing group was identified by the multiplicity of kaelen. Now, is this cause or effect? There were a lot of questions I wanted to ask, such as that one, and some basics such as the life span of a kaelen, but we'd recognized there were quite a few linguistic taboos surrounding them. One of the anomalies pointed out by N/K dealt with a set of ritual questions and answers. If this is a matriarchal society, why is the answer to the ritual question, "Who brings us life?" the phrase, "He does." And the same answer to the question, "Who brings us peace?" N/K and commentators aside, it didn't feel like deity worship to me. It is also axiomatic that any stable system consists of a gain element and a control element. Part of the energy of the system is diverted to control, to feedback, providing stability. How does that model apply here? It's strange that this thought came to me only a few days after planetfall. Something in me obviously found it important. Our lovemaking since planetfall had been glorious. I've never before been so completely satisfied, and satisfied so often. One issue we had to address was oral sex: Dale going down on me. He really loves it, and so do I. Before arriving on planet, in years past, he would lie between my legs, bringing me to orgasm before we'd have intercourse. We learned in orbit that the size of the huts, native gravity, and the so-called bedding wouldn't permit that, at least not with ease or comfort. Of course we found an alternate solution while in orbit. Dale would lie on his back and I'd straddle his head. He'd eat me to delirium, and when I couldn't take any more, I'd impale myself on him. It was a true win-win solution, even if I did occasionally shake the hut a bit while holding on. A few weeks after planetfall, we had an even more spectacular evening of lovemaking. Sometimes I'd be joined by a kaelen during the day. Sometimes so would Dale. While this was not the norm, we saw it in others as well. It wasn't uncommon especially in teenagers to see them with a kaelen accompanying them for a day or two. That observation started pointing out another pattern to me. Kaelen were carried almost exclusively by women. Teenage women carried them. Then women in their late teens did not, unless they were married. Why the gap? Sometimes we'd see boys or men with them, but usually only for a few days. Back to that evening though; I'd had a kaelen join me as soon as I awoke in the morning, scampering from one of the older women to my shoulder as soon as we arrived for the morning meal. I seemed to be thirsty and hungry all day, yet lethargic. When I met Dale on his return in the afternoon, he was quickly joined by a kaelen. He was surprised and pleased; we both liked the bugs. We liked the way they sang to us at night. We both hurried through the evening meal. Shortly after the end of the meal, we were both itchy. With perhaps unseemly haste, I tucked his busy hand in my skirt and headed to our hut. I scarcely got him inside before we were grabbing at each other. We'd become accustomed to lovemaking with me on top; I think he enjoyed it more. He seemed to lose himself in our lovemaking more than in the past; he was much more passionate, much less reserved. But that night, even though I was so horny, even though I needed him so much, I just had to lie down. He was an animal, a very passionate animal. Even thinking back to our early days together at the Academy, I have trouble remembering when we made love as many times in a night. I lost track of how many times I came, how many times he came inside me. I was lost in a delirious fog. We'd finish, I'd start to hold him to me, and after a few minutes he was ready to go again. He seemed possessed. We slept for short periods, or at least I did, and we carried on into the day. We missed breakfast, but anonymous hands left us fruit and bread in the morning. All I wanted to do was lie on my back and have him inside me. We stumbled out of our hut for lunch, and ate heartily. The younger people smiled, but kept their distance. Sometime during lunch the kaelen that had been accompanying us left, to be replaced by different individuals. When we walked back to our hut, anything but siesta on our minds, we each had one on our shoulders. We made passionate love again, two or three times I think. I was lost in that haze again. Then we slept. We struggled to get up for the evening meal, and went back to the hut afterwards. I was sore and Dale was acting delirious. I don't know if I expected, wanted, or feared we'd be at it again. Instead, we cuddled up and went to sleep under our usual chorus. Other than both of us being sore the next day or so, it was as if nothing had happened as far as the rest of the village was concerned. A while after that, I got my second period since arriving in orbit. During the long journey whispering beneath the stars, menstrual periods are suppressed. While I resumed my normal cycle prior to planetfall, I was still being medicated by the ship with a contraceptive. My periods are rough for the first couple of days. I'm tender, my bottom hurts. In this society, a woman spends the days of her period in one of a group of huts around the small pond. There's an area set aside for them to wash. Dina seemed to know the morning my period was due to start. As she led me to one of the huts after breakfast, I checked the chronometer; yes I was due. I spent only two days in a small hut, with food and drink brought to me by one of the younger girls. I slept and dreamed most of the time. I was a little surprised when a girl brought my food; I thought usually the husbands did that. I slept a lot, and surprisingly, my period was mostly over on the third day and had been easier than any I could remember. Being reunited with Dale was also glorious; he really missed me and I let him show me just how much. That night after he ate me and then I rode us both to delirium, he held me so close, suckling hungrily as we went to sleep in each other's arms. [1] http://www.very.net/nikolai/erotica/pheromoa.htm END of Part 1 Life Cycle of the Kaelen by artie@netgate.net http://www.asstr-mirror.org/files/Authors/artie/www http://artie.web1000.com/ <1st attachment end> ----- ASSM Moderation System Notice------ Notice: This post has been modified from its original format. The post was sent as an email attachment and has been converted by ASSTR ASSM moderation software. ----- ASSM Moderation System Notice------ -- Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyright with all rights reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated. +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | alt.sex.stories.moderated ----- send stories to: | | FAQ: Moderator: | +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+ |Archive: Hosted by Alt.Sex.Stories Text Repository | |, an entity supported entirely by donations. | +---------------------------------------------------------------------------+