Old Native American Legend

"The First Nations in this land had their wars and conflicts, long before the first European came. One such massacre left only two alive—a father and a daughter. They fled their enemies to a hidden valley, and found a natural spring. The Native Americans had great respect for mineral waters: brine springs provided salts, lithia springs and sulphur springs provided health and healing. These two, in that place far from their former enemies, the last of their own people...they rejoiced at their luck, and set about to rebuild their life. Just the two of them."

The lights began to dim. Lois sucked on the water greedily. There was something of a campfire horror story feel to the tale being told.

"The daughter grew into a woman. There were no young men about, only her father. Yet he would not touch her, though she was the very last of their people. It was taboo. He told her she should go off and find a husband, but at the same time he could not stand to part from her. She could feel his eyes upon her as she bathed in the waters of the spring. All alone, she would often run about naked, for there was no-one to see but the bear and the deer, and the birds..."

Blaze's eyes almost seemed to glow in the darkness. The whites were very bright.

"Something did see, and hear. The horned serpent that dwelled beneath the waters. One night as they lay sleeping, together for warmth, but back to back to avoid temptation, it slipped out of the pool and spoke to the young woman in a dream. It was a dark spirit, but there were blessings it could bestow. The daughter voiced her single wish...the wish she could not voice to her father...and the horned serpent slid back into the waters of the spring."

Lois felt her nipples suddenly hard. She was surprised at how she was hanging on every word, even as Blaze pressed another bottle of water into her hand.

"The father awoke with a terrible thirst, throat parched, his penis stiff as a pine tree. They both went and drank deep of the waters of the spring, lowering their heads to lap at it like animals...and when he raised his head, he saw not for the first time his daughter's slit as she bent down to drink...but for the first time he saw her not just as a daughter but as a woman."

Angelica smiled as though with a memory.

"The birds flew from the trees at her cry as he speared her cunt. Her maidenblood ran into the waters of the spring as he fucked her, years of pent-up lust exploding inside of his daughter's womb. Nor did they stop. Once the taboo was broken, there seemed little point. They made love when and where it pleased them, and in time life quickened inside of her...stomach swollen with child...and that first pregnancy gave them three daughters."

"Daughters," Lois said. Her voice rasped, throat dry, and she quickly opened the plastic bottle of water and slugged down a warm mouthful.

"The first of many. And when they came of age, he bred them too. All of them got pregnant quickly, and often young; they claimed it was the horned serpent who dwelled in the spring, and others came to the Fertile Valley to drink the waters, to cure themselves of barrenness or ensure quick conception. Some stayed...joined the family, for they were all one family, brother to sister, father to daughter, son to mother, cousin to cousin...until the smallpox came. Few survived, and those that were left married with the white settlers...but their descendants are still there. As is the spring."

Lois looked down at the water she had been drinking. She could barely see it, it was so dark. A hand slid onto her knee.

"Tell me," Blaze said, and in the darkness Lois almost imagined there were horns jutting from her brow. "What do you think of that story?"