Page 16 of Of Sins and Sacrifice

This is the first time I have been in such an environment and I do not think I like it.

So far, I have not seen the more…debauched side of Anthropa since I’ve kept to the streets mostly, away from the crowds of people.

But this? Touching and eating each other’s mouths in public? With so many people around them?

And if the murmurs I hear are to be believed, they don’t even know each other.

One soldier admits his wife is across the ocean, but he quickly tells his partner that he might die soon, so he’s going to have as much fun as he can. Then he leans in and licks her neck.

My eyes widen in shock.

Humans! Such libertines!

I cannot believe it. Why did Molokai not warn me about the obscenities I would witness here? I might have been only half-listening to his speech on Anthropa, but I am sure he never mentioned anything about their lascivious behaviors.

This is preposterous.

My mouth drops open in shock when I see a soldier’s hand go up a woman’s thigh, sneaking in under her dress until he…

“By the Source, what is this?” I mutter in disbelief.

He’s touching her. In her private place.

She throws her head back, releasing a low moan as she lets herself be fondled like that.

Madness. This is madness! I must get out of here as soon as possible. I cannot witness this debauchery for much longer or I will become ill.

I put more strength into my elbow kicks, targeting especially those couples that are far too indecent. After a lot of shoving and witnessing even more outrageous behavior, I finally make it to the bowl.

Making sure no one is watching, I dip my finger in the bowl and start chanting the blessing ritual. Once I’m done, I find a more quiet place and start observing.

Unfortunately for me, that also means observing more obscenities.

If I’d known what was happening in Anthropa, perhaps I wouldn’t have insisted on this mission.

Ah, who am I fooling? I would have insisted on it anyway since it might be my only break before I’m forced to mate that odious Theron.

I try not to look too closely at what’s happening on the dance floor, at how the bodies are writhing together, touching places that shouldn’t be touched except by a mate.

Yet I can’t deny that I’m also a little curious.

This is what my mother didn’t want me to know, isn’t it? This type of touching that is both scandalous and…intriguing.

I know the mechanics of mating—or at least I think I do. A male and a female are joined somehow and they exchange energies, after which the female becomes heavy with child, whom she later bears. I am not entirely sure how these touches I’m seeing on the dance floor relate to that, though.

I force myself to focus on the matter at hand—identifying the demons. But against my will, my eyes roam around the room,following the sighs and moans and every little hitched breath that comes with those forbidden touches.

Why?

Why do they make those sounds?

Is it pain? Pleasure? What is it exactly?

Is this what happens in Aperion too when males visit bawdy houses? They go there to watch this…? Experience it? But why? What are they getting out of this? So far, it seems that only the females are the ones being touched.

Deep in thought as I contemplate this matter of touching, I almost miss the hiss of pain that erupts through the air after a male drinks from his glass. The sound, low and harsh, filters through the loud music and reaches my ears.

My eyes flash, and I tense.

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